Nighthawk Chronicles: Right of Existence
by Plague Angel
Summary: End of the series. Please, let me know what you think! With both Clans Jade Falcon and Steel Viper driving to exterminate the Nighthawks amidst a full scale war, the unit becomes what it was designed to fight for a final stand against something much worse
1. Prologue

**Nighthawk Chronicles: Right of Existence**

On October 11, 3073 Clan Steel Viper launches its largest military offensive to date against its most notable rival, engulfing over a third of Clan Jade Falcon's Homeworld holdings in mere days. But amidst the Viper maelstrom, confirmed exploits of a single Falcon trinary behind enemy lines tells a story of betrayal and sacrifice so powerful it single handedly averted its clan's impending annihilation.

Forced to abandon honor in its search for truth, it stands alone in a war hunted relentlessly by both Viper and Falcon alike. It is here the Nighthawks embark on their final chronicle, as they fight for their right to exist.

* * *

**P****ROLOGUE**

Silence. It was totally unnatural, like when someone gets water in their ear and it mutes and distorts everything coming through, causing that uncomfortable claustrophobia that everyone denies.

Jacob's head swam in that water. It was dark, and comfortable. His limbs felt like they were moving through a current, slowly moving forward until it began rushing. Sounds penetrated this void, foreign sounds of panic and a reality far from here.

_"Sir, we have you. Are you alright?"_

_"Where did that come from?"_

It was his men. Yes, he remembered now. They sound so stressed… like death stuck its boney hand directly into their cockpits and jabbed at their eyes—

Then a jolt threw him back into reality where warning klaxons and flashing lights instantly overwhelmed him. Damage readouts showed his cockpit took a direct hit, and the viewing glass confirmed such. Scorch marks crept out from the ferro-fibrous armor reinforcing the windshields which steamed into the frigid air. If it was any consolation though, the heat from the impact caused the falling snow to evaporate before hitting his view port, something he could use to his advantage.

With his brain kicking into high gear, he assessed the terrain in front of him and contacted his second in command. "Jericho, report!"

_"You just took a PPC to the face, sir. It came from the southwest ridge, but Liner could not find a signature from his probe. It must have moved since it fired."_

"How? There are not supposed to be anyone around for kilometers."

_"With the precision of that hit, I would say whoever they were knew we thought that."_

_Could it be…_ he thought? No, it could not be that bad. He had to throw out any thought not pertaining to his immediate to ensure it. But in the back of his mind, he knew. It was like a sixth sense, one he wished he didn't have right now, because with thoughts like those with all their implications, it made it only harder to concentrate.

Shaking it off, he looked around and saw that his men had put up a defensive perimeter around him. They were all deployed to the mountain range south of their station to run multiple navigation drills. It was cold here, uneven, and snowing. It was hard enough to move without GPS tracking in these canyons, but the snowfall made this a nightmare scenario. Suddenly, this assignment here on Marshall didn't seem so boring after all as now, for some reason he decided not to postulate at the moment, his unit was under attack by a hidden enemy with superior placement and the element of surprise. What he did have control over, which luckily was the most disturbing aspect of it all, was their current position.

He hit the general frequency, "Enemy units, identify yourselves. This is Star Captain Jacob of the 2nd Falcon Velites, Sigma Galaxy. If you wish to engage, give me your force numbers and the conditions so I can bid properly. If not, then cease your offensive."

He waited for a response, but never got one.

"I repeat: Enemy units, identify yourselves and your intentions. This is Jade Falcon held territory and your lack of Batchall will not be tolerated."

Still nothing. That silence again, haunting. In it he was able to mentally encompass their surroundings though. They were in a canyon system in a valley surrounded by walls twice as high as their 'mechs. This particular area was perfect for an ambush. There were only two ways out, and both were fairly narrow. The first was the way they entered, and the other was at the opposite end as he placed them at the middle currently. The ridge around provided high cover for anyone wanting to peer over the edge, take a shot, and back out of view. If reality were so simple he could just walk out of this mess the same way he walked into it, though in his experience, any combat that adhered to simple logic was already lost.

He spoke to Mechwarrior Jericho who immediately complied, "We need to get out of this valley, now."

_"Agreed. Bravo Star, form up and secure the west exit!"_

_"Aff!"_

Jericho took his star and waded through the low snow to the west opening when his other Star Commander chimed in over the direct line, _"Sir, who could this be? Hellions? Vipers? Who even knew we were out here? Satellite coverage is crap under this weather system--"_

"It does not matter. We are going to stay together and outmaneuver them. I need you to pull back and follow Bravo Star. Secure the other side of that opening. I want a report on what we are dealing with over there, terrain-wise. And let nothing distract you."

_"Aff."_

Charlie star instantly started moving west when he did one final visual sweep of the canyon. Then it occurred to him that he was failing to look in one direction in particular, and when his head tilted to rectify that his warning sensors screamed back to life in time for the rest of his unit to respond.

_"Shit! We have incoming!"_

_"LRMs! They are carpet-bombing us! Get through that opening!"_

Everything started to fast forward in light of the impending danger. The incoming missiles descended like fire angels, moving through the thickening snowfall and illuminating the air around them in an eerie muted yellow. They looked more like falling orbs of fire than missiles, but they were everywhere and picking up speed. It was impossible to avoid them all, so Jacob just held his breath and threw his throttle lever forward until it slammed into the fixture housing, launching his _Mad Dog _into a sprint toward the west opening with the rest of his unit.

The impacts were thunderous. Dozens of explosions reigned around his unit, blowing snow and debris into the air to further obscure their vision after the flashes of the detonating warheads nearly blinded them. Jacob had to squint for a moment to keep his line of sight consistent, but the speakers in his helmet blew the intensity of the strike into his ears regardless.

It was pandemonium. Craters formed as dirt and rock settled back into the snow. His right foot landed in one, throwing his 'mech off balance and forcing him to concentrate his entire equilibrium through his neurohelmet to stabilize the machine before he could accelerate again. Two of his starmates hit craters themselves, one of them falling as a result. But the other two took severe damage to their upper torso from the LRMs themselves. The _Summoner _in particular sustained so much damage to his shoulder missile rack that he had to dump the ammo because the heat of the missiles hitting it warped the launch tube openings. He knew firing would only result in a jam and extra missiles being loaded into the rear of the rocket propellant of the first batch. No good comes from explosive warheads and rocket exhaust.

Two members of Charlie Star were knocked from their feet, the _Stormcrow _losing its arm in the ground impact. The other three members turned around and formed a defensive perimeter again to allow their comrades up, though they still couldn't get a clear shot at the ambushers.

Steam then rose from the ground and the craters alike, further obscuring their view. But Jacob knew that the mistake of not killing them all in one strike in this weather was that he could use that steam as cover to get the hell out of here, which is exactly what he did.

The rest of his men finally burst through the west opening to find more high walls around them, this time in a fairly narrow passage. There was more snow than rock forming the walls however, probably the result of the cold wind winding through here packing it all in. Further ahead however small patches of ice reflected back at them and told him that it was only to get worse.

He had no choice though, forward it was. He ordered his men onward and they all obliged, trying to communicate between each other, letting them know what got damaged and how much of them was still functional.

Then it came in, _"Sir, I have a follow-up here!"_

Jacob instantly turned around and saw ten 'mechs sprinting through the pass he just left after them. They were in a V formation and not letting the terrain slow them down. It was _not _the sight he wanted to see. "Shit! We have contacts! Charlie, engage while Bravo secures the end of this valley! Alpha points two and three, go with Bravo. The rest, give these guys hell!"

Large lasers and PPC bolts sliced through the air and nailed several of Charlie Star head on, but their return fire was synchronized enough to make the difference needed. Since this was not a trial and zellbrigen was most definitely not in the equation, they group fired on the second 'mech in the formation, a _Hellbringer, _since it was known for having crap frontal armor but being particularly nasty in cold weather where it can actually make better use of its heat-heavy arsenal. Two PPC hits and a Gauss slug punched through the 'mech while the smaller shots nailed the legs. The impact of the attack counteracted its own momentum, nearly blowing it backward, but the return fire from its starmates illuminated the opening and evenly distributed damage across his entire unit to kill any initiative he tried to generate. The incoming 'mechs were trying to set his men up for a group kill, which is why Jacob didn't engage just yet. He was too busy looking at his radar and studying the ridges above him. He knew that if the aggressors were simply chipping away armor evenly instead of group firing to take them out one at a time, it would make sense to have the missile support 'mechs redeploy and finish the job quickly, which would work much better if he were on the run.

_"Got him! Eat shit and die Stravag!"_

_"Taking fire from the left side! Nail the Timber Wolf next. That thing is killing us!"_

_"Loud and clear—Crap! I am hit! My right arm actuator is scrapped! There is half my weapons load!"_

_"Seneca! I need your range here. That Mad Dog's missile racks have 'target' written all over them. Punch a few holes in there while I paint the rest of his torso!"_

_"—fifty percent. Four of my heat sinks just went to pot!"_

_"Got it! Holes incoming…"_

Then the red dots appeared on Jacob's radar around them. The missile support 'mechs were converging around the valley, fast. He knew their time was up. "Move back! We have another missile strike!"

His men took down another enemy 'mech while sending the _Mad Dog _into a slow limp. They turned around, exposing their back to a renewed enemy offensive, and ran like hell toward the end of the valley that Bravo had pegged out. But the horror of reality hit him way too late. The trajectory of the missiles was off… they weren't heading for the ground. They were aimed higher…

"Punch it, they are nailing the walls! Use your jump jets--!"

But the low rumble of the impact drowned out his speech. The missile volley penetrated the snow walls on both sides, burrowing deep and exploding outward, sending muffled shockwaves into the air and disrupting decades of snow compaction. Instantly the rumbling built, letting them know that the avalanches coming were faster than their 'mechs. The four 'mechs with jump jets avoided the rolling wall of white crashing in on them, but the others had no choice but to pray they made it past. Three did not.

The weight of the snow toppled the lagging 'mechs over instantly, covering the first two in a blanket of white and suspending the third one nearly on its side before compacting around to seal it in. After the rumbling stopped, there was nothing but smooth snow covering the area.

_"Ahh! Oh… crap! I am buried here! I cannot see anything!"_

_"I do not know how I am standing. I think I tilted over when it hit…"_

_"I cannot aim my weapons up to blast out of it! The whole 'mech is stuck!"_

The panicked voices of his troops transmitted to everyone in his unit. Heavy breathing, high-pitched voices, and frantic hitting of controls signified the urgency of their situation. They were buried alive with nowhere to go. Nowhere but up.

_"I am punching out! I hope I make it far enough to get out of this!"_

The first ejection seat punched through the smooth field of snow, but made it no further than ten meters before the first incoming laser veered past. Several more followed and suddenly the seat was blown off course and perforated in multiple places until it twisted and landed pre-maturely, dead in every sense of the word. The second ejection seat punched through and met the same fate, literally launching into a hail of gunfire that obliterated it on the spot. The third one never went. The snow was too dense above the seat and the pilot instantly drove into a wall of solid white. Snow crushed his eyes and filled his mouth and nasal cavity instantly as his head was forced through the mass. He didn't even have time to go numb before he suffocated to death.

Jacob had to push those thoughts from his mind as well while he devised a new plan. And the plan he came up with was more of a 'If you can't beat 'em, join 'em' effect. "Screw this! Find hard cover and watch that pass! Take them out when they come after us and watch out for those missile 'mechs! They will bottleneck right after the last attack site and we can take them out then!"

His unit took the best cover it could instead of evacuating the pass. The pursuers apparently didn't expect this, because they just came rolling over the newly formed ground cautiously as to not hit any loose patches and fall through. Their caution eventually slowed them down enough to let him time his strike appropriately, and the effect was stunning.

The remaining enemy force appeared through the snowy/dust wall that formed over the avalanche site. It was eerie to see it because these hunting figures were not properly outlined, but seemed to form slowly from a blinding white mass. They came, looking left and right for signs of survivors when the few looking forward stopped dead in their tracks, realizing they were too late.

Jacob's remaining men launched a lethal wave of munitions at them, firing all at once and taking the unit by surprise. The enemy had expected them to continue running, and this was all he needed to even the score. Instantly the ammo bins on the lead _Warhammer IIC_ lit up and sent its torso twisting in several directions at once. The shrapnel from the CASE structures blowing out hit the _Stormcrow _behind it, piercing its armor and puncturing its engine shielding. Its shutdown allowed Jacob's men to pick apart the rest of the unit in short order, with the return fire finding only one of his men exposed enough to unload on. They were successful in taking his third point out, a _Nova_ that was damn near perfect to use in this weather with all those energy weapons. But one loss was pretty good when facing a binary head-on.

The victory was short lived however. Right as the _Stormcrow_ managed to override its shutdown sequence and stir back to life, the remaining missile 'mechs appeared again on the ridge closer to them. Jacob instantly remembered the ice walls forming the ground these ambushers were now standing on and ordered his men to fire into them. Backing up, they threw their entire missile payload into the glacier-like canyon walls, and the breakage cracked and sent echoes through the entire valley system. The cracking continued as the enemy missile 'mechs tried to shuffle their feet in reverse to avoid an embarrassing fate, but it was no use. They fell with the landslide and were partially buried in the snow now in the valley, surrounded by large chunks of solid ice that formed a bar keeping the _Stormcrow _behind them out of the game.

It was then that he got his unit out of that entrapment.

Finally, he could breathe again, or at least try to slow his breathing. He ordered his men out of the valley and into a clearing ahead, which had several exit points. It was much more desirable from a defensive point of view, and more importantly, it would give him a moment to think. "Roll call!"

Everyone chimed in and gave him the status of their 'mech. He lost four in the engagement, and another three of his men were near useless considering the damage they sustained. Truth be told, it was pretty good to come out with that many after being ambushed with inferior ground. But he wasn't celebrating yet.

_"Sir, who else is out here? Why did they not call out ahead? Are they bandits?"_

"Neg. Bandits do not have omnimechs. These guys were here to kill us, plain and simple." Jacob returned to the thoughts he had earlier, of the possibility of this enemy being more familiar than he would want.

_"Well they sucked! An entire trinary! HAH!"_

"Stand fast Mechwarrior! We need to hit high ground and get a path out of here."

_"Well, I see some ground to my left I can use to get on that ledge--"_

And for some reason Jacob's head went cold again. The silence… like a hundred sirens going off at once, blotting out everything around him. Something was not right…

BAM! His 'mech shook to the left as a volley of LRMs slammed into his right side. Seven out of the remaining eleven 'mechs in his trinary got hit at once. He turned to see what was going on now when another enemy trinary made its way through one of the clearing openings. They were coming from the direction his unit was originally heading in, maybe to sandwich them with the original ambushing force. Jacob was suddenly glad he took the other force out so quickly, but had to get to a defendable position, and fast.

"Hit the opening on our two o'clock! Go, go, go!"

They all charged for the opening, finding the snow a little thinner here and easier to maneuver through. They received fire in the rear again, this time doing more damage than before. Luckily, before they knew it they were behind more cover.

In front of them was another clearing, with a small hill ahead of them to their right. They continued advancing when through the snow Jacob saw some reflection coming from the ground, and realized the shape of this clearing was a little too basin-like.

"Wait! No!"

The 'mechs stopped on a dime while he continued studying the layout. "It is a frozen lake. No way we are going over this."

_"Well, how else are we supposed to get to the other side? The only way out is forward."_

Jacob thought while the mental image of that trinary turning the corner behind him crept up way too fast. Then he realized that the hill to their right must be either an island, or a strip of land through the waterway hidden under the snow. He ordered his men to walk from a point lateral to their position straight for the hill, around it at close proximity, and forward to the opening. If they were lucky, he would either minimize their distance on the ice, or eliminate it altogether. Either way, it was their only shot.

They went single file, but kept their throttles forward because he knew they had little time. Luckily, the distance was great enough that even him, being the last one to go, was out of effective range when the trinary behind finally appeared. He hit the edge of the frozen lake, mostly covered in the freshly fallen snow and walked to his left to bait the following force directly across in pursuit. This would be quick if he planned it right…

The advancing unit started for him, setting up a left wedge formation when the leader suddenly stopped.

One of his troops chimed in, _"What is it? We need them in another fifty meters…"_

"Give it a second. This one is not stupid. Look."

The lead 'mech, a _Hellbringer_, studied the ground ahead of him while the rest of his star kept their guns pointing downrange. The rest of his trinary did not file in behind him. They must've been stuck behind the opening if he halted them.

Then the _Hellbringer_ fired a single PPC into the ground thirty meters ahead of it and watched the ice under the snow crack open into a half dozen shards exposing a fresh water hole.

_"Stravag! He figured us!"_

Jacob waited just another moment before realizing that if they had not engaged at that range by now, they probably would not at all. But he had to be sure, so he sat for a moment, taunting them, waiting to see what this new commander would do.

After several moments, the tension grew so thick it could be cut with a scalpel. Jacob ordered his men out of there and into another series of canyons. Luckily, these opened up a lot, so they were not necessarily boxed in anymore. But with the unit on the other side of the lake figuring a way across, it would soon not matter so much.

_"Which way?"_

Over the radio transmission Jacob heard the booming footsteps of battlemechs, and the sudden realization of what that commander had done hit him in the face like a brick. "Take co--!"

But it was too late. The two unseen stars from the other unit were ordered around the clearing altogether behind the cover of the ridge to flank his men. While he thought he was baiting them all onto the lake, he was really fooled into waiting long enough for that other commander's troops to get into position to surround them.

_"I cannot see them yet! They are at range _--CHUNK--_!"_

The sound of weapon's impact resonated over the transmission. These guys were coming in much quicker than he had hoped. His only chance at survival was to find cover he could use to get out of this mess once and for all. And he found it to his left: a cave opening large enough to fit several battlemechs that had some light shining through telling him it led out and not into a dead end.

"There! On your nine! Follow me and keep zigzagging!"

He didn't want his men to fire back. He needed them to get out intact so they could regroup and follow up on those hunches he refused to think about now. They kept going while his rear view showed the two stars advancing like a small plague of locusts, jumping over rocks and maneuvering around each other for the best shots possible without slowing down.

They kept going until the darkness of the overhang enveloped his cockpit. He hit his light-amplification switch and saw solid rock walls illuminate in electronic colors wide enough to continue with a floor flat enough for movement. _This is perfect,_ he thought. "Keep coming until you are all in!"

He moved onward while his men filed in, slowing to prevent hitting the sides of their rides on the cave walls and keeping it orderly. Turning a corner to his right, he found the next opening, which led to yet another snow covered clearing. This one was separate from the one behind them, so his plan would work perfectly.

He burst forth from the opening and turned his amplification off just in time to avoid being snow-blinded. The sudden rush of white still forced his eyes to adjust though, and it took a few moments of darkening and lightning before his clarity returned. Three steps later and he saw something on his left. The figure of a _Hellbringer_, standing, waiting for him.

He hit reverse without thinking as his men chimed in, _"We are in! They are closing though. We need cover!"_

"Shoot the upper ledge at the entrance! Seal it shut!" If they could close the hole they entered through, it would protect their rear indefinitely. Surprisingly, they didn't object as real warrior would stand and fight these stravag bastards, not run and hide. But this was not honorable combat, and they apparently trusted his decision to survive another day for reasons unknown to them yet.

Immediately he heard the fire over the comm. while his men closed the entrance to the cave. His 'mech shot backward while he turned his head to look at the commander that outsmarted him on every move. But it wasn't the 'mech and its placement that overtook him. It was the insignia it bore. It was Jade Falcon.

_No…!_ He was right. His worst instincts told him he was correct to entertain the thought his own Star Colonel ordered him dead. It was his own unit! The first trinary was Star Captain Berkau's, and he designed the ambush! The second trinary was just transferred, he couldn't even remember the name of the Star Captain… but he was good. He was methodical, and as Jacob turned his 'mech around to watch his men make way from the collapsed entrance behind them, that commander beat him to the punch.

This is why he ran. Because if they died here today, his commander would win. His secrets would be forever hidden. And he could not allow that. He had to survive.

Using his own strategy against him, the lead _Hellbringer _didn't fire on Jacob's 'mech as it sprinted back toward the cave it emerged from. Instead it fired on the ledge above the opening. The entire star fired on it, and within seconds it had broken away.

_"Sir! We have you!"_

_"Keep moving! You got it!"_

His men shouted him on as the realization of his own impending death settled in. He had to keep moving. He could not go out like this, a victim of his own clan! He had to survive, just to see his commander pay! He had to push through…

The earth shook as the opening gave, and the sky fell from the heavens and enveloped him. He collided full speed with the falling debris, trying to pile-drive through it, feeling the force of metal against ice through his neurohelmet and cursing the world as he drove through with all his will. It was loud, and a white world turned to black in the blink of an eye with his 'mech swimming in the snow for a moment, lost in time and space. And in no time he was in that void again, that comfortable place with no direction and no feeling. The final thoughts echoed through his mind and faded…

Steam rose with the snow and dust, and the firing ceased. All the sound was absorbed after that, finishing the transition from a canyon to a tomb.

That silence returned, more unnatural than before. It was a silence that was deafening.


	2. Chapter One: Overexposure

**CHAPTER ONE: OVEREXPOSURE**

In a hospital bed laid a man of once great stature. Years have atrophied his body though, and while the brain stayed in survival mode, it hasn't moved in that time. Like a statue it sat, collecting dust if the orderlies did not keep the facility so clean. The brain wave reader and heart monitor technology was even nearly outdated. New units went to fresh patients, ones with a chance of recovering. But this was once a warrior, and warriors get priority treatment anywhere in clan space.

If one were to look closely, study the skin, they would notice the pigmentation recede. Veins were faintly visible through it from lack of sun exposure, but it remained fresh, every inch of it. The main torso and the appendages, even the fingers. Look at those fingers… evenly spaced. Move closer and the different lengths of each could be identified. And if one weren't looking, studying the intricacies of the human shape, they would miss it: a twitch. So quick it mimicked a heartbeat. Maybe it was just a muscle spasm, completely uncoordinated. But again, it moved, ever so quickly. And now, slowly, it merges with the rest of his fingers.

The dormant man's eyelids open for the first time he can seem to remember… or not. Something came through. Something drew a single page of his history and showed it to him. With his pupils dilating and adjusting to the air, he opened his mouth to inhale deep though no sound escaped when his chest compressed the sterile air out again.

Next to his bed the brain wave monitor lit up. What was once a comatose screen itself with a just a single green line at the bottom suddenly spiked into a myriad of activity. Different colored lines representing the cognitive parts of his brain danced and jumped until the single red light at the console next to the bed turned off, and the green light next to it illuminated.

* * *

Hunter entered the room with a curious look on his face. Being an intern of just four months, he never thought this person would wake. Every week he would check up on him and find the same results. But now… now the instruments were alive and beeping. The man's head actually turned to meet him, locking eyes and suddenly emitting a sense of urgency Hunter never thought could escape from the still body.

"Shhh…." His lips were weak, and his throat incredibly dry.

"My God, you're awake?"

The man groaned and returned his head upright.

Hunter instantly examined the readings and went through his mental checklist as his patient finally spoke, "Shhhhhhaaaaaaale."

"Sir? What is a shale?"

"It's….. a hhhherson."

"Well, I am going to get Dr. Kissinger in here and have him run a few tests. Welcome back."

The man reached out and grabbed Hunter's hand, "Shale."

"Look, I don't know--"

"Have to warn… him." He struggled to get the words out, but his determination overcame his physical weakness.

"Sir, you have been in a coma for near three years. Whatever you need to tell this person probably does not pertain--"

"Please. If I do not survive…" He closed his eyes in thought, and then looked directly at Hunter, "This is my only wish. I… please."

Hunter contemplated his actions. He knew Dr. Kissinger would do his thing anyway. But this man woke from a three-year coma and poured more of his soul in his first request than anyone has in his entire career in medicine. What would his father tell him? The doctor of the family. Would he deny him?

* * *

Star Colonel Dev Iler approached a bench in his favorite park. The air was still cool from the morning and most of the people exercising have left to shower and report to their duty stations. He kept walking aimlessly until his watch read what he needed it to. This was the only time his contacts could get his satellite phone to work a secured, direct-link off-planet. After all, these things are always easier face-to-face, but that luxury was not an option. The signal went through and he heard the noise of the phone's standby tone as the other side's receiver picked up and synchronized. Then his earpiece let him know he wasn't alone though he was the only one lowering himself onto the seat next to the walkway.

_"Any developments?"_

"Just one. Though I do not think it has much to do with anything."

_"Do not grow oblivious on me. What is it?"_

"A former member of my unit, one that was flagged two years ago just went AWOL. This kind of stuff is not entirely unheard of, but he has been gone for three days." They did not use names when they spoke. No written documents were sent, and only secured, irregular interplanetary communiqués were allowed. The niceties of conversation took a back seat as someone he talked to no more than five times a year had become his best friend for a few moments at a time.

_"How is this a development?"_

"Well, he was stationed on Ironhold and a starport here on Strana Mechty just made him."

_"Hmm… And this warrior was with your unit at the time of 'the incident'?"_

"Aff. I pinned a tail on him. No results are in yet, but it is on the top of my desk."

_"Good. People here are getting impatient. We are moving the timetable up."_

"What? I do not have everything--"

_"Get the ball rolling. You knew this day would come eventually. Be a warrior and set the tone."_

Frustrated, but submitting, Dev knew he was right. A warrior, even one as aged as him, is never afraid to press forward into unknown territory. He would tackle the next step with as much vigor as any battle he'd waged. Though it didn't mean he liked taking orders from a phone. "Fine. I can have a presentation ready in 48 hours. The latest information will seal the deal for sure, just like I told you."

_"As long as it has the desired effect. This is too crucial to mess up. I have faith in you."_

"Faith has nothing to do with it. You loremasters may have the metaphysical down, but here, it is planning and execution."

_"Let us hope so. Things are already in motion on this end. See you on the battlefield."_

"Aff."

* * *

There was a reason information gathering was one of the most dreaded duties any warrior could be assigned. It was nothing but collaborating phone calls, electronic transmissions, troop movements, and investigating hunches that more times than not proved to have no ground. The 14th Intel Ops unit was a small one, and not that prestigious at that. Kael Pershaw had this tiny, ten person unit of his beloved Watch camp out on Glory to pursue a rumor of other clans tapping information from their supply routes. Two months produced six different clans through rumors and tips. All the information lead to a dead end at some point, but they were promised some R&R after the assignment, and two more weeks were needed to fulfill that requirement.

Or at least that was the mindset as of yesterday. At 1800 hours, sightings of non-Falcon personnel came through from the secondary surveillance team. The suspects had some high-tech equipment with them. Suddenly, the suspicions got heavy, and everyone took their job seriously again.

Star Commander Fallener had his troops assemble to give them an update on what they found already and had the primary team follow the movements of the unidentifieds. The meeting was in their assigned office where he had coffee and a weapons check-in station set up. It was not as relaxed as their last few meetings.

"Lier, what is the story?"

Lier was a Mechwarrior previously, but recruited to fill the ranks of the Watch after a good stint on Gatekeeper. Most of the members were ex-aerospace pilots, warrior wash-outs seeking to not be law enforcement agents, and Mechwarriors that would hold senior positions despite their not using a 'mech too often. "Sir, I know it sounds weird, but… it looks like another Watch unit."

"Kael Pershaw would have told us if he sent another unit."

"Neg. I mean, from another clan."

For a moment Fallener paused, not knowing what to say. But he entertained the idea and had Lier show him and everyone else present the evidence supporting such a conclusion. It was filled with footage of specific moving formations, selected high-tech equipment not found on-planet, and evidence of codexes on the supposed civilians recorded. With the visual evidence, it was hard to deny it was possible. But Fallener was not about to report that to Kael just yet. He wanted some solid evidence.

So they spent the next hour going over the locations these people were found, who they talked to, and how they traveled. Different vehicles were used nearly every time, the people they talked to held key positions that would have information on general, and sometimes not-so-general military taskings, and they still never found where they lived since their trail ran cold every time they popped up.

Fallener ordered a full report compiled and ready for transmission within 24 hours, then Lier started packing his stuff up. That is when Fallener tried to contact his security team outside, and never got a reply.

"I say again, security team one, report status."

The room was quiet. Everyone watched Fallener as he started pacing.

"Maybe the radios are malfunctioning. Keys, Giles, get your weapons and sweep the perimeter. Report back immediately.

"Aff."

"Aff."

Both of them got up and instantly went to the weapons center. They were arming up when Fallener gave the rest of the team its orders, "Surveillance, I want to up the hours. Keep a full 24-hour tail on those guys. Equipment: check those radios and do your rounds. Tech: I want the transmission before we send it to the Star Colonel. Have it in my hands tomorrow."

"Sir?" It was Giles at the front door.

"What is it?"

"This door is jammed shut… from the outside. It is unlocked, but--"

Instantly the lights cut out. Even the emergency lighting didn't respond as the local circuit was probably cut too. The only light in the room was the laptop screen illuminating Lier, who was caught packing his stuff.

"What the hell?"

"Where is the grid?"

"I think outside along the west wa--" THWOCK! No less than twelve sub-machineguns with sound suppressors went off. It was quick. Just the sounds of the bolts of the guns, blood splattering on concrete, and bodies hitting the floor filled the room for several seconds. Flashes of faces as they imploded, bodies as they swayed in the air, and one panic ridden man in front of the laptop screen flooded Fallener's visual cortex before he too suffered a gunshot wound to the head. Instantly the contents of his cranium blew out the opposite side of the round's entry point and landed on the body next to him.

It was over in seconds, and the next day, the bodies were never found.

* * *

Sleep was such a cumbersome thing. In his youth, Kael Pershaw used to think sleep was a waste of time, prohibiting one from accomplishing eight more hours of work in a day. But in his age, he grew to need it, and eventually enjoy it. He would never admit it, as it would show him as lazy, because he had enough trouble keeping the image of a productive member of his clan behind years of prosthetics and tune-ups. Truth was, the last few years were his most productive. While he still yearned for the feel of a 'mech cockpit's command couch, he settled into his position as Loremaster well. And, as little knew, his influence as Clan Watch leader took more and more of his time. The world was growing faster in pace, and his units were barely able to keep up. Which is why sleep was so coveted anymore.

The communicator next to his bed rang to life and forced him to slowly open his eyes. The room was dark, having only the light of the receiver blinking, so his real eye did not have to adjust too much. His groan was enough to tell anyone near that the most hated piece of equipment in his quarters was his communicator. But of course, no one was around, which is why he could finally undress and sleep in comfort.

It was because of that, however, that he hit the 'audio' button instead of the A/V; to spare the recipient the image of his cybernetic state. It was still unnerving to most when his uniform was not obscuring their view of his false components. False skin was attached to some of them, while real skin was grafted to the more visible ones. He used less and less real skin anymore though, as his own was getting pretty thin in his old age and anything new was simply out of place, looking more fake than the fake stuff itself.

"Yes?"

_"Kael, it is Marthe Pryde."_

Instantly he perked up. This was not like her, to call at 0237 in the morning. He had to turn his head to see the clock, and his brain groaned like his body did moments ago.

"What can I help you with this time of the morning?" Call it arrogance, but Khan or not, he had little patience for anyone waking him up this early anymore. Luckily, he and Khan Pryde worked together so much that she would do nothing more than verbally remind him of her rank if she felt he was getting out of hand.

_"I am en route to your quarters now. I caught word of some internal mess concerning the Nighthawks."_

"Internal mess?" Kael rubbed the eye that was not under his half-faceplate, his only real eye. The scientist caste offered to have an actual, mechanical eye implanted in his other socket, but he just opted for the traditional prosthetic, a glass one. He was not one to have a weakness due to age give him an advantage later. It would be his mind that would prevail. And while the message seemed mute to younger warriors, most solahma recognized it, and respected it.

_"An investigation apparently has been taking place behind closed doors, collecting your unit's exploits. Thirty minutes ago word from one of my staff members made it to my office. An emergency Clan Council session has been called here on Strana Mechty."_

_Here?_ He wondered what was up. Normally internal clan matters were settled on Ironhold, with the halls here on Strana Mechty more for show.

"When?"

_"Tomorrow."_

"Ma'am, how many bloodnamed warriors could possibly show for an emergency council within that time?"

_"I am going to be there shortly. I will inform you then."_

The transmission cut off, and Kael sat up with the little adrenaline his pituitary gland mustered. His mind raced with scenarios and sifted through months of experiences to comprehend the scope of some underhand investigation. He came up with nothing. But he wasn't finished. He accessed his personal terminal and ran through several backlogged files that may have some relevance. After a minute, he realized he was spinning his wheels. But he did notice he had a new message, marked 'Urgent'.

He opened the message and saw that his closest advisor, Star Colonel Arimas Malthus lost contact with the 14th Intel Ops unit on Glory. 36 hours with no communications. What bothered Kael the most, however, was that he just lost another Intel Ops unit on Huntress in the same fashion. It simply vanished. Something was up when a pattern reveals itself like this.

He hit the audio on his communicator again, this time for an outgoing transmission. Moments went as the thing rang on the other end, and finally, Arimas Malthus picked up.

_"Star Colonel?"_ His voice was also groggy as he was most likely sleeping too.

"I received your message about the 14th. This is the second unit in as many days. They were investigating the chance of another Intel unit in our infrastructure, quiaff?"

_"Aff. So was the 110th."_

Kael thought to himself and spat orders out like he was known for, "Get the local law enforcement to track the teams down and put the Tokasha Dark Wing and Second Falcon Dragoons on alert. I want Star Colonels Nicholai Icaza and Emer briefed on the possible threat and have them brush up on their non-'mech combat maneuvers to fully help the urban troops if things light up."

_"Things light up? Sir, we are not exactly prepared for that. Star Colonel Nicholai Icaza is currently en route to Strana Mechty for an emergency Clan Council."_

Kael audibly groaned, "Savashri. Did you get the notice too?"

_"Notice of what, sir? All I was told was there was a council meeting and I may be the advocate, to what I am not sure. Since I am on-planet already I have been brushing up on my--"_

"Apparently what they told Nicholai Icaza was potent enough for him to abandon his post so quickly. They probably failed to inform you of the circumstances regarding the council session, quiaff?"

_"Aff. Like I said, no details were mentioned."_

Kael thought for a moment, then said, "Go to the council, but be prepared to take some heat. And I want no word of the missing teams. If someone is trying to blind us, it is best we look as competent as possible."

_"That is… pretty deceptive, sir."_

"Would you like to be deceptive, or insubordinate? This is not the time for niceties, and you do _not_ want me to get angry with you."

_"Understood. I will send the orders immediately."_

"Good."

Kael cut the transmission as Marthe Pryde knocked on his door. She wasn't kidding about being on her way.

He donned a utility uniform he had in his closet and opened the door for her. She nearly plowed through him to get to the middle of the room while he closed the door behind her. Normally, her face was expressionless, but this was one that hinted at anxiety, anger, and concern all wrapped into one. _Maybe she would do well with a faceplate as well,_ he thought sarcastically.

"Kael, I do not know the scope of this, which concerns me immensely. Bloodnamed warriors from all over the Kerensky Cluster are heading here for the proceedings. I just now got a copy of the message sent to them, as I was apparently left out of the loop."

"Ma'am, you were not the only one to be ignored. Members of my staff also got overlooked. Someone is maneuvering before the game even starts."

"Something you do so well. But I am not here to berate you. I need to know something, and you will tell it to me as straight forward as possible."

"Anything you wish, my Khan."

"Kael," she started. She was not known for informally invoking people, especially other warriors, but her making this personal fell inside her realm of concern and getting information out of him. "What is Operation: Whitewash?"

Instantly a lump formed in his throat he thought could be the size of a baseball. He had trouble swallowing it, which he hoped didn't show visibly. He inhaled, not entirely prepared to answer that particular question, "My report of the Kenton operation was complete… except…"

"Except…"

"The Lyran task force had a contingency operation set in place to contain the virus if any other sovereign entities got a hold of it."

"That was in the report, along with the other Covert Ops unit."

"Aff. The operation in question involved a tactical strike on the areas containing any organic life."

Her eyes widened, "A nuclear one?"

"Aff. It was in the periphery, so it did not make the news."

She sat and thought about the ramifications. Of course she was pissed that he did not tell her that the planet was exterminated earlier, but he sometimes purposely left information out to protect her from scrutiny. If she did not know, she could not be accountable for it. This was on his head since it was not mentioned, and she knew it. But why and how this information made it to someone else eluded her completely.

Someone knocked on the door to his quarters right before his intercom lit up with the voice of his orderly, _"Sir, several Elementals and… military officers are here for you. They are requesting entry to your quarters."_

Marthe instantly replied, cutting Kael off, "This is Khan Pryde. They will hold until we are ready to leave."

_"Aff."_

She then looked at Kael, who said, "My Khan, my operations have only served this clan with the most honorable code of conduct allowed. I only left you in the dark to protect your--"

"I do not need your protection. And you are right to think that I would have disbanded your unit if I knew several million people died."

"I will not let my men be dishonored through false testimony. What happened was _not_ our fault. If it was, I would have committed surkai myself, in the harshest of ways." His real eye was staring her down with enough intensity to make up for near two decades of cold, emotionless service. She knew this accusation hit him hard, and right now, she knew he would fight it to the death.

"I believe you," she began. "But you need to convince everyone else to do so as well." She got up to leave when she turned around for one last word, "This is going to be ugly. And I will have to execute the will of the clan."

He did not even look at her when he replied, "Understood. You do what a Khan must."

He typed the code that would format the storage base in his computer, and activated the device that literally fried the internal components, making it scrap in mere seconds.

Then she opened the door and had the men clear a path for her to exit before they came in and secured the head of the Jade Falcon Watch. They didn't need to shackle him as he wasn't capable of overpowering them if he wanted to put up any physical resistance. He walked through like he still owned the place, not once changing his demeanor from the staunch figurehead he was. If no one knew, it almost looked like he was leading the troop out of the building. But there was something hidden behind the near machine-like demeanor: it was concern. Concern for his troops, because they had no clue what was going to hit them.

* * *

The parking lot was not particularly well lit, but near the Jade Falcon primary enclave on Strana Mechty, an elemental could care less of lighting. Star Commander Shaine left the equipment rental place with enough survival and climbing gear that it literally took an elemental to haul it all in one trip. He earlier received a transmission from one of his troops, Samme, who was climbing Mt. DeChavallier. He was having so much fun that Shaine decided to meet him on one of the next peaks. It was a nice change from the stuffy city atmosphere here.

He dropped the equipment bag to have it land hard on the asphalt with the sound alone telling how heavy it was. As he opened the trunk several headlights activated around, blinding him and bathing the area in white.

"What the hell? Who is it?" he asked.

Two armored Jade Falcon Elementals and two unarmored security forces officers approached him with their backs to the lights. The Elementals stopped several meters away, the light behind making them eerie silhouettes. Luckily, his eyes adjusted enough to see the agents as they neared. "Star Commander Shaine of the 32nd Special Operations Unit?" they asked in return.

"Huh?" Shaine, along with the rest of the Nighthawks never advertised their identity, let alone their unit. These people did their homework.

"I will take that as a 'yes'."

"And you will take a lot more than that if you come any closer. Who are you?" He was not in the mood for mind games on his vacation.

"We are here to execute order 946b, which means placing you under arrest."

"This is bullshit." Shaine got into his car out of disinterest to have one of the elementals rush him as a result. It got there right before he was able to close the door, grabbed his arm and pulling him out with enough force to have him skid two meters along the rough ground after landing from the throw. He looked up to see the next elemental with its foot raised high to stomp him in the face.

"We are to execute that order by any means necessary," he heard before the impact jolted his consciousness from this world.

* * *

Loud techno music boomed through the walls of Mechwarrior Weston's room while several colored light strobes oscillated around to create a very 'cultured' feel to a most casual of occasions. He was enjoying his promised R&R with a new warrior friend me met several hours ago. She was every bit as flexible as she said she was, and of course, was willing to prove it on a mattress with the appropriate help.

Many like outside stimuli when coupling, like loud music, club lights, even toys. But several armed guards bursting through your door and clubbing you into submission in the middle of coitus is usually not on the list of favorites. Weston was so preoccupied that he failed to offer any resistance. His partner, fairly pissed at being interrupted, managed to break the jaw of the lead officer and nearly took the second one down before several gun barrels found their way in her direction in defense. A simple apology was apparently not good enough to calm her, and her menacing stare alone scared them out of the room with their target in tow, leaving her options open to salvage the night, or pick a fight somewhere to vent the rest of this energy off.

* * *

Newly promoted Star Commander Marx went over his checklist for the second time after running the diagnostics check on his _Timber Wolf_. He had some drills planned for his star that would help him concrete his role as commander now that Thao Prentice signed off on it. He already knew the troops under him, having just previously been among them under the late Star Commander Brevan, but commanding them was a different animal and he wanted to be the best he could, and fast.

He normally went over the list three times, so he gave himself a head start checking his machine out before the other troops arrived. Everything was perfect so far, except the scenery. As he lifted his head from the cockpit hatch into the open air, he found himself face to face with a laser pistol barrel.

"This is uncalled for," he started, trying to keep his cool.

"This is business," the man behind the gun retorted.

Marx looked around and found two more men with their weapons drawn. They weren't pointed at him, yet. "I have my own business to attend to. Real warrior stuff." His words picked at the fact that most law enforcement personnel were washed up warriors or failures that weren't good enough for more, 'skilled' duties.

"Your business is cancelled." And with that the man charged the coils to make that ever-so-eerie whining noise that told Marx he was seconds from having a third eye socket so deep he could hide the remote control in it. So he just planned on contacting his commanding officer and getting this straightened out officially. His order had his troops surrender quietly as well. Though he didn't see them in transit…

* * *

The game was very complex, calculating each shot, the distance, accuracy vs. rate of fire, value of target, type of weapon used, and of course, a penalty for hitting non-targets. The targets themselves were funny balloon-like people with cartoon features and smooth, humorous animations. The weapon Thao had was a mock assault rifle.

Thao Prentice, Julian Buhallin, Bree, and Gregors were out at Nicky K's enjoying drinks and games. Their R&R was well deserved after their last tour in the Jade Falcon Occupation Zone and the six-month ride back. Strana Mechty, while known for its political importance, was a well-rounded recreation spot since all the clans got to contribute to Katyusha, the capital city, and its surrounding multi-clan controlled area. The game they were playing now was a firing simulator with several themes according to the level. Some had tropical bananas to shoot, while the later levels had realistic alien-reptiles. Some argued that the game should get easier as you played because you would have ingested more alcohol at that point, but again, that's what made it fun in the first place.

Thao had his faux-assault rifle, one of four weapons he could have chosen represented by a real weight replica fitted with a laser diode in the barrel. His added score was 84, with a firing rate of one shot per every 1.18 seconds. He rotated his neck and smiled at the score, telling everyone how well he could hold his liquor.

They teamed up in pairs, with Thao and Gregors on one team, and Julian and Bree on the other. Julian was up next, who wasn't really paying attention. He was taking a drink from his water when Thao slapped him in the shoulder to get him focused on continuing.

"Oh, yeah." Julian approached, grabbed the replica pistol from the selection housing, and lit the screen up. He was quick and methodical, taking out all the medium range targets, then moving in for the closer ones. They weren't worth as much, but he was nailing them so quickly that his score ascended past Thao's by the time he was just ¾ done. He finished with a 98, firing every .56 seconds.

"God! That was my best round. Ever!" Thao pouted as Julian patted his shoulder in consolation. He knew Julian wasn't out to embarrass him on purpose, he could have probably done it in his sleep.

"Yeah, why do we not have a three-on-one against him next time?" Gregors finished with a light laugh.

"Have a few more drinks and you are on." Julian didn't even look at the final score, which had him and Bree beating the other two 185 – 102.

"But you have to get them," Gregors responded.

Thao tilted his head in the direction of the bar and followed Julian over while Bree and Gregors looked at the jukebox.

* * *

"It is nice to have you out," Thao started as the bartender prepared their new order.

"Nice to be out." Julian looked over and saw Bree in the distance look back at Thao and crack a small smile, almost unnoticeable to one who wasn't observing so closely. He laughed a little and caught Thao's attention immediately.

"What?"

"Oh, nothing."

There was an awkward silence while Thao sipped from his latest drink and the others were being poured. Finally, mid sip, Julian asked, "So how are you two?"

Thao nearly choked on his drink from the suddenness and suggestive nature of the question. He had to reset and carefully swallow. "What do you mean?"

"Oh, come on. You spend six months in a jumpship and it is all out of your system? Did you iron things out?"

Thao sighed, "Neg. I mean, aff, but… it is complicated. Look, there is nothing--"

"You do not have to explain it to me. I know more about you than you think. Maybe you need to explain it to yourself first."

"Yeah, well, not all of us are automated robots like you."

Julian laughed at that. "Well, that robot just beat your ass in 'Free Fire', so step up, Romeo."

"Touché."

* * *

Bree and Gregors moved further into the complex so they could see the racetrack out back. There were mini racecars for warriors to compete with and a fairly entertaining track to show their skills on. Of course, these things went near 70 kilometers per hour, so the roll cages and helmets were titanium.

Gregors stayed back for a minute to read a poster of an upcoming band while Bree moved on ahead. He hoped the other two would return with the drinks soon because his buzz was already subsiding.

When he turned around, he couldn't see Bree anymore. He started looking around, and maybe it was the liquor, or maybe too much training, but he could have sworn he saw several men in uniform moving toward the same location ahead of him, looking for something. _Great, someone is in trouble already. We had better get some cars soon before they shut the track down temporarily._

He made his way toward the corner Bree turned and saw one of the uniformed men right behind her. The man tapped her on the shoulder and grabbed a pair of wrist restraints from his belt. He charged in ready to get some answers, and quick. This was his relax-time. "Hey! What is going on here?"

"Star Captain Gregors?" the man replied.

That stunned him for a moment. The Nighthawks never advertised their unit or rank, even in warrior bars. Their codexes were enough to allow entry, and that was all they needed. The fact that this officer knew his name and rank outright was fairly surprising. "…yes?"

"You and Star Commander Bree here are under arrest. Please comply quietly and your cooperation will be noted."

"Arrest?"

"Under what charge?" Bree interjected.

"Second degree murder of non-combatants. 2.5 million counts."

The people in the immediate vicinity instantly silenced at the magnitude of what they just heard. Gregors, again stunned, took a moment to figure out what he was talking about, and then just responded, "… oh."

The other officers arrived and took another pair of restraints out. Bree backed up, "I want to speak with my commanding officer first."

"Star Colonel Kael Pershaw is already in custody."

"Good," Gregors said, "then he should have quick access to a terminal."

"I do not think you know how this works," the first officer said.

"I do not think you know how this is _going_ to work," Bree replied, with an especially menacing look in her eyes.

* * *

"There, keep the rest." Thao paid the bartender in KE and looked at Julian, who was eyeing the doorway. Several officers moved through the entrance, wearing what looked like Jade Falcon security forces uniforms.

"I thought this was a multi-clan zone. What are Falcon officers doing in this jurisdiction?"

"I do not know. That is kind of—yes?" Thao's shoulder was tapped by the person next to him; who was holding up his personal communicator.

"Um, are you Thao?"

Looking confused, Thao answered slowly, "Yes…"

"This call is for you?"

_Now what the hell? Someone else's communicator asked for me by name…?_ He took it and put it to his face. "Yes? Who is this?"

A fight broke out past the jukebox with several more of those security forces officers and some poor schmucks who got caught in front of them most likely. The funny thing about a fight in a bar full of clan warriors is that there are always ten or so that like to get in on it. It erupted into a brawl in that corner in no time, but didn't extend too far. It was weird to see the first time, but not uncommon once you expect it.

Julian just watched the other guards coming into the complex proper when one of them spotted Thao and touched his mic to say something. Then the rest of them fell in line behind him and headed their way.

"Where? Right now?" Thao was still on the phone.

Julian tapped his friend on the shoulder, "Dude?"

Thao stopped the transmission and put the communicator on the counter in front of the owner, then turned to Julian and said, "I need to get out of here. Now. Cover for me, will you? Tell them I had an emergency."

"Aff." Julian stood in a way that hid Thao as he hopped the bar and made his way out the back. He took his tray of drinks and moved in a way to intercept the officers, not thinking to ask what was going on since he knew he didn't have time for a proper answer anyway.

When he neared the officers he started to act drunk, swaying a bit and blinking erratically before spilling his entire tray on the first guard halfway through the table area.

"Hey! Watch it!" he yelled as his uniform was saturated.

Julian just looked at him with confused eyes and said, "Oh man. You spilled all my drinks! You know what I wuz havin'?"

"Get out of my way," the guard said, shoving him aside. Then the second guard, walking in tow took a good look at Julian's face as he passed and pulled out a small data-pad. Then he grabbed the first officer's collar to stop him and said, "It is him! The second target!"

In a heartbeat Julian elbowed the second guard in the face, breaking his nose with an audible 'crack' and sending blood out in every direction. He seamlessly followed up by reaching deep between the man's legs with his left hand and grabbing his collar with his right, quickly lifting the man over his head and throwing him down into a nearby table.

The table broke in half with the impact, sending an empty glass into the air which Julian caught with his right hand and threw right into the face of the third guard in one smooth motion. The glass shattered into a few dozen pieces, tearing into the man's face and twisting him aside in pain.

Julian then grabbed the first guard, whose mind was just catching up with the situation, by his neck, closed in to thrust his arm under the man's armpit and slam his forearm into his back, kicked his leg back into the hip of the guard, and sent him flying like a side-ways pendulum into the last officer. The impact was hard, and both men fell back, hitting the side of a chair and having the first officer crush the last one between him and the ground.

Julian followed up with a flying side-kick to the shredded face of the third guard and nailed him so hard his neck snapped back, knocking him unconscious instantly.

Then it was a quick six-second run to the door and he was gone. The other warriors inside were all playing the sequence back in their heads since it happened so fast, probably seven or eight seconds before he bolted, and the three conscious officers were slow to get up, being offered no assistance from the spectating warriors after an embarrassment like that.

* * *

"You got it?" Daniels handed the binoculars to Mercer, who could see the incoming vehicle already, but not the details of it. It was cold enough here that it didn't kick up any debris as it bounced its way away from the city behind to the garage structure out in the middle of nowhere that Mercer and his friends were using to fix up one of their rigs.

"Thanks. We get a call about it?"

"Nope." Daniels handed a rifle to Mercer as well as he replied, knowing exactly what needed to be done if this went awry.

"Alright! Keep a low profile and continue working. I want two guards near the main door and one on the roof!" Mercer shouted back to the rest of his men, then left the perch and went through the building to the front. He waited near the front door, looking one more time through his binoculars while two more men came up behind with their assault rifles to give him cover. He was really wasting time, not getting any more information about the vehicle this time than before.

It drove to a stop sixty meters from the building, giving the driver enough walk-time for the men to assess him and decide not to fire. He wasn't carrying anything obvious, though this time of year everyone had a winter coat on, and one could pack a lot of heat under one of those.

Mercer left the building to meet the approaching man in the open with his assault rifle strapped across his back. He knew he was covered at this range from his men inside, so he strode out there casually in a non-threatening fashion. It was nice having his beard for the coming winter. Few know how well it insulates the face when the going gets tough. While his spots of dead frostbitten flesh were long taken care of, he never again wanted to be vulnerable to the cold of this place.

"Hey, I thought you'd be out here," the man started as he neared. His dark sunglasses and sleek car suggested either a high scientist rank or military affiliation. His short-cropped hair and powerful walk helped bulk his presence as well, though something about him told them he was definitely not the type to wander the outskirts of dark caste territory.

"Are we that predictable?"

"Mercer, right? You still going by that name?"

"For a while longer, yeah. What've you got?"

The man pulled a piece of paper from his breast pocket. Mercer was surprised, as people of this stature rarely even _saw_ paper. He handed it over and Mercer silently unfolded it and read the single, hand-written sentence it had.

_That name…_ Instantly blood rushed to his head and his body heat started to rise. After six years, the mention of one particular person still sent a rage through his mind that could tear mountains apart.

"They said you would know what to do." Then the man turned and got back in his vehicle to leave.

Mercer also turned around, not even looking back at the man as he left, reading the note over and over again as he approached the building his team was occupying. Daniels met up with him near the door with obvious concern on his face. "What is it?"

"Pack your gear up, we're heading south."

Daniels was going to say something when that comment stopped him cold. He thought for a moment, trying not to show his mixed emotions on it. "How far south?"

"Far enough that you won't like it. Get extra cold weather gear too, this is going to be a shitty week."

"Sir!" Carter, the man posted on the roof shouted for him. Mercer headed up there and looked in the direction that had Carter so concerned about.

In the distance two clusters of omnimechs lumbered their way south, toward their boarder and their most hated clan's capital city in their primary enclave. Two clusters was not a joke, not here.

"What do we make of it?"

Mercer thought. Six years of hiding, working, and smuggling supplies over the clan boarder for food money had built instincts in him that he would have never developed in his previous life. And if that man driving away knew who he really was, his name, his history… This was all wrapped together. Time was even more important now than before. Whatever was going on was going to be big, and he did not want to miss out on it. Not if a promise of retribution was in order.

"We take an alternate route."

"Alternate route? Where are we going?"

"To the mountains. We avoid line of sight with the force and its supply convoy. Pack enough food for two weeks and arm up as much as you can."

"Alllllright." Carter just shrugged and left to start packing. When the vehicle in the bay was done they would be off, masked by the canyons and shroud of intended ignorance on the part of the clans. They may have lived in the underground, outside the system, but they knew that system through and through. And here, in the outskirts, outside the bases and cities, it was their territory.

He wouldn't tell the men what the note said. Not yet. They all had a stake in it, and he needed them sharp as ever from here on out.


	3. Chapter Two: Betrayal

**CHAPTER ****TWO: BETRAYAL**

Chains. They were so rusted. With all the money pumped into this invasion you would think cables, or even rope… but rusted chains? They grit on his skin when he fought against them. Not only did they pinch when he squirmed, but they rubbed off, drying his skin out and forcing the bleeding breaks in it to hurt all the more.

They did tighten up when pain was administered. The lack of any allowed movement was more for psychological effect than physical. To add to it, the room reeked of mold and a leak in the ceiling always seemed to break his concentration. His feet were stretched out just like his hands so he was left spread eagle. And he didn't see the light of day for over a week before the doctor finally came in.

Even then it was not day, but a single light bulb, a dull one that flickered. It was an honest attempt at recreating an old nineteenth century torture cell. And it worked. Fear, while absent at first, slowly crept into the room with the moldy stuffiness. Every now and again a rat would appear somewhere in the dark, unseen. It always continued chewing on something, making a grinding noise before it squeaked and disappeared again.

But the doctor planned on changing all this: this daily routine of isolation. He wasn't great company, but it was definitely a change, and not for the better.

"How are we doing today?" he asked cheerily as he rapped his knuckle on his victim's cybernetic leg in passing. "I brought some goodies today that may play nice with that leg a little. The clan alloys are always a blast to mess with. I know you're waiting in suspense, but this'll take a few minutes to set up."

_Right,_ he thought. Like this sadistic freebirth was courteous, or even sympathetic. He knew why he was here, and he would not speak, ever.

"I see your hands have gone numb. Let me take care of that." The doctor put some cuffs on his triceps that helped circulate blood back into his arms. They exploded into pain at the shoulder, and slowly ached up toward the fingertips. He instantly wished they were numb again because it took all of his concentration to keep from screaming.

"Now, you remember our conversation last time. You were about to answer a question for me, I'm sure you remember what it was."

"The answer is still the same, asshole."

The doctor chuckled. "Well, I see a trueborn like yourself has no vulnerability to a slow death. How about I speed things up a bit? This should hold you over until I'm ready."

Small drops of sulfuric acid landed on his right shoulder. It was warm at first, but then he smelled something burning, and before he knew it several holes were slowly burning their way through his flesh and into the bone near the base of his neck.

"You will not let me die," he growled through clenched teeth as he fought the urge to scream as his nerves boiled and cooked. "The point of torture is to get information, not kill the man giving it. You will get _noth—AAAAAAAHHHHHRRR!"_

It just kept going, deeper and deeper. But it was so slow. All the willpower in the world would eventually wear out. It took almost twenty seconds before his voice started to raw out as it was still sore from yesterday. Despite his screaming, he was determined not to speak as the approaching unconsciousness was his next best strategy to keep his integrity.

Then it all went black for a moment. The pain went away and he didn't feel the chains slowly mincing his skin off. It was a wonderful moment, a true escape from the horrors awaiting…

Then suddenly he was jolted back to life to find the eyes of the doctor, slanted, Asian eyes staring through him and his pain, searching for a part of him that he hadn't violated yet. "I will not let you get away from me," he said inches from his face, close enough to smell his breath through the stench of sizzling flesh behind. "You are to enjoy every moment of it. This is the _life_ you lacked when you lost the battle."

Electrodes were pasted to spots up his spinal column and neck, cold to the touch. The burns on his shoulder were cauterized shut now with the nerves so deadened that it didn't even hurt that much anymore. He knew surgery could repair all that damage, but these electrodes: he didn't know what they were for just yet.

"You see," the doctor started, "The central nervous system is spread out through the brainstem and spinal column, where I can pinpoint nerve clusters and trigger simulated pain signals that are sent to your brain. Just the right combination will make you wish you were dead, while these up here will shock your brain back to life, so you _can_ enjoy every minute of it."

"Animal," he started between heavy breaths.

"What was that?"

"This… only proves how barbaric you really are."

"Oh, and when you survive this your clan will take you back? They will pamper your wounds and reward you for your tolerance? Or will they shun you for losing your planet and degrade you, stripping you of your command and forcing you into a future destined for solahma duty?"

"My clan will make you wish…"

"Wish what?" He smiled as he walked around his victim, knowing that the computer was adjusting the voltage in each electrode and registering it through the receivers on his head to figure out just how to push this brain to its limit. He knew he could feel it, prying around, pinching nerves here, inflaming muscles there… it was the ultimate state of vulnerability. "You will wish you were dead by the time I am done with you. And maybe, just maybe, you will not want to return to your clan, for shame is a powerful agent.

"What I do to you will not matter, as your mind will have graduated past the point of honor and dishonor, right and wrong. Because," he continued as the voltage meter was turned up and pain overrode any cognitive thought after the next few words, "Right and wrong can be rewritten when you really want to die."

* * *

The terminal in the coffee shop was luckily empty for a while. Thao Prentice tried to contact several members of his unit over the last three minutes, with all attempts failing. Exhausting that effort, he left the shop immediately and moved through the side alley to the next block in case someone was tracking any incoming calls to his men's personal communicators. He was damn paranoid now since the Nighthawks have disappeared in just a few hours, and whatever was hunting them down was determined to succeed. It was that determination he had to match, and eventually overcome. Kael Pershaw was nowhere to be found either, much to Thao's chagrin.

Thao several times spotted a car or two going down the street with people wearing the same Jade Falcon security forces uniform he saw the night prior. He did not see any more multi-clan police though, which was in part a relief, and in part very bad. Whatever was happening, it was private.

He avoided cabs and public transportation us much as possible since they had cameras in there for security and accountability reasons. So he walked the rest of the way to the place he was told to go by the person on the phone last night: the second largest hospital in Katyusha. Whoever it was knew Thao, and knew he would want to talk to whoever was in that hospital. At first, Thao thought it was some dark caste matter, like some underground mafia or something. But when he reasoned that it might be much deeper than that, possibly even a splinter cell of the Falcon ranks, he decided to get things straight right away. Answers were his top priority, and his unit disappearing only justified his newfound caution.

Thinking back to his secondary training days on Ironhold under Kael, Thao was now doing what Julian did so well: infiltrate. He moved through the emergency room entryway near the basement and quickly found a way into the laundry area. There he secured scrubs and a lab coat to wear. The garbage receptacle was good enough for his uniform as he had no use for something that made him stand out as the target he was anymore.

Then it was to the check-in desk, where he silently memorized the floor plan and room number system to identify his destination. He almost used the stairs to get where he needed, trying to avoid the cameras in the elevators, but realized that he was already on some storage drive from the surveillance in the lobby and decided to act as anyone would now.

The music in the elevator could not match the tension building around him as he traveled up the building. If fact, he even wondered if the person standing next to him in the small cube could feel it emanating from him like the force it was.

* * *

The hallway leading to the room he was told to visit several hours ago looked normal enough at first. But as he worked his way through he noticed two men wearing security uniforms paying special attention to his destination from a distance. He knew he had to blend in even further to avoid risking exposure this close to those answers he so deeply craved. So he improvised by studying the orderlies, residents, and doctors around. He even asked which doctor was treating the patient in question before grabbing material that looked identical to the assistants around. Finally, he spotted the nametag of Dr. Kissinger as he walked by and followed him with his eyes as he walked into another corridor.

With the doctor out of the equation, Thao just walked with a fake sense of purpose into the room, successfully escaping the attention of the men in the distance. It was pretty smooth, but once in the room he saw who laid there ahead with wires sticking out of sensors on his head and several IVs supplying nutrients through needles in his left arm. The recognition of the man is what nearly stopped Thao in his tracks, but his brain just leaked the name out of his mouth in a whisper that got the man's attention, "Berkau…"

Star Captain Berkau turned his head to the side and saw his former comrade standing there all dressed up like a med-tech. "Thao…"

"It has been a long time." He approached the bed slowly, not really seeing this man since he was transferred out of his unit and into the Falcon Watch so long ago.

"Aye." Berkau's breathing was labored, though not difficult enough to warrant concern. He was pale too, despite the ultraviolet lighting around him.

"Why did you call me here? What was that message about?"

"My memory… escapes from me when I try to catch it."

Thao groaned internally as he did not want to deal with dialogue strewn with metaphors and similes. His confusion was far greater at this point, and poetics were something he grew to hate after all his time with Kael and Julian. "Memory of what?"

It was a pretty stupid question. If the memory is gone, how can he remember what it was? Thao would have hit himself in the head if he knew he probably wasn't under surveillance right now.

"We have been very bad. I think we helped the enemy more than our clan."

"What are you talking about? You are not making any sense."

"I have been in a coma for almost three years. I remember… He betrayed us."

"Who betrayed us?"

"We had to eliminate him, keep it quiet, not loose honor."

"Eliminate? Berkau, slow down. Start from the beginning--"

"But it did not feel right. The answers…"

Thao started looking at Berkau's chart wondering what kind of head trauma he had. His speech made no coherent sense, probably from either the long coma or the drugs they had him on.  
"Put that away," Berkau demanded defensively.

"Then talk clearly."

_"We were wrong."_

The look he gave Thao stopped him momentarily. This was not the same man he remembered fighting alongside all that time ago. Star Captain Berkau was tall, spoke strongly, and commanded respect. This man was broken, either from a long sleep, or from guilt. Thao had trouble telling one from the other.

Berkau took a piece of paper he had near him and a pen from the tray on his lap and started writing. His handwriting was deplorable, but legible enough to be worked with.

"What is this?"

"Shale."

"Shale?" Thao thought hard. _What is a shale?_ _Wait… Star Commander Shale… Yes…_

Berkau handed the paper to Thao before Dr. Kissinger's entrance caught their attention.

"What are you doing in here?"

Thao found himself still holding the chart, "Checking his fluids."

"Who are you?"

"Thee… med… tech…"

Kissinger was obviously annoyed, "Well, if you don't mind, this patient has serious rehabilitation work to do. Finish your training downstairs and stay out of my wing. Damn interns…"

Thao just moved around him and left the room to see the two men who were eyeballing it previously closing in. They must've heard the doctor's surprise because they were on to him now.

He quickly stuffed the paper in his pocket and booked it back down the hall, lowering his shoulder and plowing the undercover guard on that side over and into an empty gurney. He then plowed into a doctor holding a few files that exploded with paper upon impact and had to spin away like a football player to make it to the elevator before its doors closed and cut off his escape. The screams and concern behind him caught his attention when he turned around inside the elevator to see the second guard slip on a piece of paper and land on the linoleum floor hard enough to make him wince in sympathy.

The doors finally shut to silence the world outside. It was then that he realized how fast his hard was pumping in contrast to the slow music that never changed since his ride up. He knew they would radio ahead and have people waiting for him at the elevator stations below but kept his concern internalized for the sake of the person next to him. Of course the thing couldn't have been empty, simplifying the entire scenario, and the unfortunate pedestrian sharing this ride with him had selected the sixteenth floor, which was approaching fast.

As the elevator slowed to align with the outer doors of the sixteenth floor, Thao backed up to let the other person leave first. They rushed out the moment the doors opened as his presence seemed to make them fairly tense. Finally alone, he hovered his finger over the 'door close' prompt on the flat touch-pad and poked his head out into the hallway to appease his adrenaline-build curiosity.

Instantly a pair of clasped fists axed their way down the opening, narrowly missing Thao's head as he pulled it in quick enough to have his hair grazed by the intended knock-out blow. But the hidden attacker rounded the corner as Thao hit the pad, and tackled him into the back wall of the elevator.

Thao instantly grabbed the man by his lapel and elbow in the kumi uchi grappling stance Tasaki Sensei taught him so long ago and pulled him close so he could slam the point of his bent thumb into the base of the man's neck, knowing that the pain from the strike would be devastating when it hit. The man retaliated before the pain registered by head-butting Thao and driving him into the opposite wall, where his hands wrapped around his neck and squeezed it until nothing was getting through his throat cavity. The look in the man's face started to blank out as the previous strike finally took effect, but his grip never loosened. Thao, feeling unconsciousness lurking around the corner, lifted his leg in a way that the inside of his foot caught the man in the groin, sending him back just two feet; enough room for him to sidestep him and kick his knee out and send a back-fist into the now kneeling man's temple. The person's head snapped around and he fell limp to the floor.

But Thao knew he was far from getting out of this. He realized that his hand moved after hitting the plate and touched the first floor button. The elevator was almost there now.

He knew more guards would be waiting for him outside, so he had to make his escape now. He looked up for a fire escape hatch and found none. A large metallic cover over the lights took up most of the ceiling. So he jumped up and hooked his fingers over the top edge, using the weight of his swinging body to dislodge it from his side of the elevator. With a loud creak it broke and sparked before swinging downward into the far wall. And under it was the hatch he was looking for.

Punching the small door open was no big feat, but jumping and climbing through was. Luckily, he could probably levitate with all the adrenaline pumping through his system now and nearly proved it by working his way through quickly. He made his way to the roof of the elevator as it descended and had to keep his balance since it was moving faster than he had hoped. The sight of the elevator shafts beside his with their own lifts moving up and down almost gave him vertigo, so he just closed his eyes a moment and waited for the thing to line up with the first floor door before continuing.

He tried to pry the outer doors of the second floor door open with his fingers as soon as he stopped to no avail while the sounds of the doors opening below and the rustling of the responders inside made every second crucial. Frantically looking for a solution, he noticed a hinged bar keeping the door ahead shut. He tried to unlock the hinge by lifting it to find it too tight.

One of the men below started shouting as he noticed the open fire hatch and jumped to get through, missing the first time around. Thao, knowing his timetable had long since expired, kicked the hinge from underneath and popped it open, then pulled the doors apart to reveal the hallway ahead and sprinted like there was no tomorrow down the stretch and away from the man emerging behind him.

He just kept going with his lab coat flapping behind him like a superhero's cape. He dodged one way and juked another trying to keep his speed up without colliding with the people ahead. But after his forty-meter dash he saw two more security forces officers round the corner. They had guns too, and his mind automatically hit the brakes. He slid to a stop, using his hands to spring him back upright before launching into the room to his right. He slammed the door shut behind and instinctively swung a large cabinet-cart on wheels into it, having the first shelf end up right under the horizontal door handle and jamming it in place. That would stall them for a bit.

But he kept going anyway. He hit the door leading to the wrap-around balcony outside and turned left like he was previously heading. He kept chugging, trying to control his breathing and get a rhythm going to keep him charged until the end. But the pulse of a laser pistol shot past his head and made him think twice about his course of action. It was wide and nailed a building down the block, sending a little bit of debris up where it burrowed deep into the brick.

While counting the steps it would take the reach the end he heard yelling from above as other guards were paralleling his movement from the next balcony. A few more shots seared deep canyons into the stone walkway around him as he predicted what he would find an a few moments.

He sprinted as hard as he could knowing that the man behind him should have been done taking aim, and jumped at the last moment as another laser cut through the wall he leapt over aimed at his legs. He felt gravity take hold and fell butt-first down a story into a loaded garbage dumpster.

His legs hit something cushy upon landing, but his head must've landed on a glass bottle or something because it cracked something under it and stung. But he forced himself up anyway and hurdled himself over the edge of the dumpster into the alley that contained it. The guy on the balcony above appeared and instantly took aim, forcing Thao to abandon any chance of getting out into the street proper and dive head first through the door to the next building as the last shot seared most of the sole off of his shoe.

Getting up without missing a beat, he realized he was now in a hotel. This of course made sense, as clan homeworlds always had a hotel next to a hospital for outpatients and families of lower caste members to minimize the extended time in much needed hospital beds. But this presented a different situation entirely for Thao. He almost shook his head to clear it and figure out what to do next, knowing that the man behind him would burst through that door any second now.

So he just followed his instinct and raced toward the lobby, where he hurdled a bench and the edge of the centerpiece fountain to make it across and through the parking garage doors. He was moving so quickly that people barely had time to yell in surprise or ask what was happening. He just plowed through the door and conveniently found the parking attendant getting out of a retrieved car for its owner. So, doing what he thought best, Thao dove between both the attendant and the owner and landed in the driver's seat.

Slamming it into gear while hitting the accelerator, the car lurched forward and out into the street. He turned right and blended into traffic pretty quickly, but realized it was fruitless as ahead everyone was stopped at a red light. He made his way up to the last stopped car when he saw a black military van frantically pull into the hotel parking garage, most likely looking for him. It missed him in his new ride, but he knew the car owner would be happy to point out which direction he went in. So Thao went left and around the parked traffic into the on-coming lane and planned on making it through the intersection to lose these guys once and for all.

Behind him he noticed the van launch back into the street in reverse, appearing out of nowhere and smoking its tires in an attempt to catch up with him. But while he was looking in his mirror to see that, he missed the transport truck moving across the intersection ahead of him and t-boned it at eighty kilometers per hour.

It was loud. In an instant his eardrums shrank in pain and deafened him as the impact shattered the side windows and forced the vehicle to crumple around. Safety foam exploded from the steering wheel and sidebars to solidify into a protective wall. It cushioned his entire body as it slammed forward with the inertia and prevented any serious injury.

It was also quick. It took a second for him to realize what had happened, and then where he was. The foam hit its third stage of deployment and softened up to what could be similar to a silly-string texture, allowing him to penetrate the layer to his left out the side window and proceed to crawl out.

Upon hitting the ground and landing in a pool of glass particles, he saw the van skid to a halt fifteen meters away with the side doors already open and men poised to leap out and grab him.

So, in his still dizzy state, he ran around the now stationary truck and trailer further into the intersection since it was really the only way to go. He somehow managed to find a hole big enough to run through without getting hit, but behind him the shockwave of a second impact, this time another transport truck plowing into the one he just stopped, sent him rocking forward as several cars swerved in avoidance. They mostly collided with each other as well, but he did not look back. He kept going forward, hearing the glass from the vehicles as it scattered across the asphalt and the compressed air from the airbrakes escape as so many seals broke in the collision. These cars were all electric, so there was no fuel to leak or ignite, making the situation much better than it seemed. But it was still probably a big-budget movie crash behind him though he kept on chugging to the next alley without looking back.

He did glance to his left before he entered the alley to see the magnitude of the crash, which was rather impressive. Two semi-trucks and six cars littered the intersection, with civilians rushing in from all sides to help those out of their vehicles. The mayhem prohibited the team behind him from advancing enough to locate him, and he counted it as a blessing, though he hoped no one was seriously hurt.

Now that his equilibrium was back he realized just how hard it was to run with half a sole on his right foot. But he adjusted to make it to the next block. There he spotted a bus at a bus stop and ran up to it to make it on.

Sitting down in the first seat he could find, he started to finally catch his breath. He was going so hard that he didn't even assess the damage to himself. Looking down he saw some blood seeping through his scrubs and felt a little warm stream down the side of his face.

"Man, you need to get to a hospital," the guy next to him said.

"Ah, hell no," Thao replied through labored breaths, "I just came from there."

* * *

Normal holding tanks in clan security centers were well lit and within view of the guards. These were different.

Bree stood in her two meter cubed cell in complete darkness. The thing was for the most part soundproof, with the low ceiling making it very claustrophobic. It was like being locked in an airtight box, with no stimulus. The isolation alone was nearly driving her insane, with no room to pace or particular direction to stare in… she didn't even know which wall was the door.

She remembered being taken down at Nicky K's by Falcon security forces and noticed that her and Gregors were the only ones loaded on the transport. Two empty seats were prepped but never filled, which suggested that Thao and Julian got away. She could only hope. They, of course, didn't inform her of anything. She was hauled into this box of a room in a long hallway of them and locked up. Nothing happened since. She put her ear up to the walls trying to hear something, anything.

For a moment she thought she heard footsteps, but realized that it was probably the blood pulsing through her ear lobe. In really quiet rooms you hear that ringing that you don't hear normally. It's always there, but you don't notice it until there is nothing louder to focus on. That ringing seemed to get louder and louder, and she periodically snapped her fingers to make sure she wasn't deaf. She knew logically she wasn't, but small, dark places do funny things to your head. And she had a feeling her entire unit was in these.

Being a Star Commander, she felt some sort of responsibility to help other members of the Nighthawks cope with this isolation. The thought of one of them losing it in a box like this infuriated her. These were too good of warriors to be treated like this for no reason.

She kept calming herself from getting worked up over whomever did this to them. Her temper would flair and she actually noticed a rise in temperature in the room. She knew it had to be ventilated somehow, or else she would have passed out by now from the carbon dioxide buildup. But apparently it was stuffy enough to reflect her temperature, and in turn, her mood. Of course, now the question was: did the room make her mood dark, or did her mood turn the room into the heated, stuffy space it was?

* * *

The weather slowly deteriorated with his day as rain clouds moved in and a chilled breeze made his scrubs increasingly uncomfortable. A light drizzle hit Thao's face as he looked up to see the address illuminated on the repair shop on the outskirts of Katyusha. He entered and found an isle of repaired items ready for pickup devoid of any attendant. This place was assigned as an alternate repair location for just about any electronic component that someone didn't want to send back to the manufacturer for work. Thao didn't doubt the man running it probably did 'side work' as well as these places were known for it.

A short man with a beard poked his head around the corner of a work desk behind the open doorway at the end of the isle. Upon spotting Thao he spoke, "I am closed for the day."

"Are you Eric?"

The man's eyes almost whimpered in dread, but he stood up and answered the question with one of his own, "Who's asking?"

"Thao Prentice."

"Oh," his demeanor didn't change much, but a broader understanding set in, "What can I do for you?" He squinted a little as he asked from studying Thao's appearance. A bloodied, partially wet man in torn hospital scrubs and a warrior's posture. Not exactly incognito.

"I remember seeing your name on a file of informants a while ago. You worked with Star Colonel Kael Pershaw?"

Instantly Eric motioned for him to quiet down. Apparently he kept his informant status hidden from the general public, especially with multiple clans running the area. "Here, come back."

He motioned for Thao to follow him back and sat him down in the back repair room.

"What the hell happened to you?"

Thao took the piece of paper out of his pocket and handed it to Eric, who studied it thought a bit. "Not really the answer I was looking for… what is it?"

"I was hoping you could tell me."

"Well, this is a location, a closed area in a district not too far from here. Used to be the main transportation hub, but everything was moved to the river four years ago."

"And they did not renovate it into something else?"

"Heh, while we preach 'recycle, recycle, recycle', some things just get swept under the rug."

"Tell me about it," Thao mumbled under his breath.

"Take that off, let me get you some antiseptic."

Thao took his scrub top off while Eric cleaned a few of the more serious cuts on him. He only had to pull two pieces of glass from his back, which made Thao feel a lot better about his predicament because it felt like there were probably a dozen still in there.

"I'm surprised you don't know where that is."

"I am not familiar with this city."

"Well, Julian could be a cab driver in any city I've heard of--"

"I am not Julian. This is… not a normal operation."

"Hah! Normal operation. That's a good one," he laughed while slapping Thao on the back. Ignoring the look of pain and annoyance on the warrior's face, he went into the next room to emerge with some clothes to replace the rags Thao wore in.

Then he gave him a map of the city and marked the area in question. "This is a general area, you have to find out which building."

"Do you know what is going on?"

Eric just looked at him straight, "I never know what's going on. That's my only protection if stuff gets out. Truth is I shouldn't have helped you without your CO calling me first, but consider it a favor. Now try to keep a low profile leaving here. I don't want any trouble, okay?"

"Yeah, got it. Thanks, Eric."

Eric nodded and saw Thao off. As Thao walked away from the shop Eric turned his head and saw a man crouching on the rooftop next to his, watching Thao from afar. He recognized the onlooker who didn't seem to care that his location was compromised and instantly knew some bad stuff was going down. But again, Eric did not want to get involved. He just shook his head and went back into his shop hoping the backlash didn't reach him. Thao was in for a ride, that was for sure.

* * *

Night fell on Katyusha, and Thao agreed it was appropriate. The area he was in was definitely not worthy of a spotlight illuminating all the crevasses that littered this place. It was abandoned, and fairly dilapidated. But only one building really caught his eye, which qualified it as a starting point to his search. There was a central warehouse building with several floors near the center of the district, with other, larger warehouses along the main road, but only smaller garages and power stations immediately around it. He decided to start his search there. Star Commander Shale should be in there, as indicated by Berkau earlier. Not only did Thao try hard to not think about what that security forces crew probably did to Berkau after losing him, but he also wondered if enough of his brain was working to accurately pinpoint Shale's location. And if he was even on-planet at all. _All these answers would be known soon enough,_ he tried to convince himself.

He scampered across the street as a rain finally came down. There were no cars really traveling this area this time of night, so it wasn't hard to keep a low profile, albeit, nearly be invisible. He made his way toward the building in question and looked for a back door.

After finding one, he entered and found the building largely empty, abandoned, and easy to carry echoes of footsteps and anything else due to the lack of sound absorbing material.

He was careful to make his way through silently as he searched out the rooms lining the walls of the main opening. When he found nothing, he moved to the second floor, watching the lightening flash through the windows of the stairwell and casting shadows on the far wall and floor. He almost tripped from the shadows being so overtaking, obscuring the real stair edge from the darkened one. But he managed to make it to the second floor entrance.

He slowly opened the door enough to look around the edge, and across the middle of the main opening he saw something. It was low to the ground against the wall in the distance. Without advancing just yet Thao squinted to focus on it and find out what it was. Then his eyes widened when another flash of lighting revealed it to be a body.

He made his way quickly along the right wall, low enough that the lightening didn't cast a large shadow of his movement across the long floor when it hit. Observing the entire place for a few more seconds, he decided it was safe to approach the body, and found it sitting on the floor, slumped over against the wall, bloodied and still. It didn't smell yet, telling him that it must've been killed recently.

He crouched next to the corpse and lifted its head. It was hard to see in the poor lighting, but the limited number of options as to who would be here waiting for him out. Accounting for several years of age and a different hairstyle, the body of Star Commander Shale stared at Thao with lifeless eyes. In an effort to avert his gaze, he moved the face to find the throat slit open.

Thao cursed inside his head as this was the only lead he had up to this point. He then sat next to the body in defeat. After a moment of moping, he decided to search Shale's pockets and found something in his left cargo. It was a folded picture about the size of a standard sheet of paper. He slowly opened it when another bolt of lightning crashed outside and cast a long shadow of a man standing in the opposite end of the room across his plane of vision.

Instantly Thao crouched into a defensive stance, awaiting a strike of some kind, but found the man just standing there with his face hidden in the shadows. Then the man took a step forward, and Julian revealed his face.

"Oh shit. What the hell?" Thao breathed a sigh of relief as Julian approached. But something didn't seem right. It could have been the paranoia, but why would Julian creep up on him like that? What was he doing here? And why was his face not surprised at the sight of the dead Star Commander?

"Hold it," he warned, and Julian just kept coming, not showing the slightest hint of fear at Thao's threatening tone.

His demeanor actually calmed Thao a bit as he approached and kneeled to assess Shale's body. "Not going to get any answers out of him," he quipped. Then he turned his head to look at the prize in Thao's hand.

"Have you been following me?"

"Aff. If I revealed myself, I thought you would defer to me and not get as far as we are now."

"What are you talking about? Get as far as we are now?"

Julian looked at Thao, "This is all about you. Whoever was in the hospital, and whoever this is… you need to connect the dots."

Thao thought, he thought hard. He looked at the photo and realized it was of his old unit, the one Kael Pershaw pulled him from back in the day. Many of the faces were burnt out of it, with Berkau's body scribbled out entirely. But what did it mean?

But, as much as he concentrated on the task at hand, he had to know, "What happened to the rest of us?"

"Detained." Julian crouched next to his commander, "Some group of Falcon security forces has hunted most of them down and stored them in some detention center. I do not know where it is. But being in Katyusha, this is not sanctioned."

"How do we get out of this?"

"The Ebon Keshik may offer some protection, but if Kael Pershaw is detained as well, then Khan Pryde may not throw the good word for us in to their onsite commander."

"Aff, so that does not seem like an option."

Then, several flood lamps illuminated the windows of the complex while a booming voice amplified from outside reverberated its way in, _"Star Captain Thao Prentice, relieve yourself of any weapons and exit the building to the front. You are hereby under arrest and will be taken to a detention facility for processing."_

"Processing?" Thao asked.

"There is an emergency clan council happening here tomorrow. I assume it has something to do with this. Maybe they want us there for the proceedings. But I seriously doubt they would let us know either way."

"Great. Well I cannot leave now. I need to find out what 'this' means and follow up on it." He referred to the picture in his hand.

Julian thought for a moment, then asked for Thao's jacket. They swapped and he told him how to get to the river from here. If he followed it down two kliks, he would find a road back into Katyusha.

"Okay, but this entire building is surrounded."

"I can take care of that."

"Thank you," Thao said, putting a hand on Julian's shoulder.

"Yeah," he replied, handing him a flashlight without peeling his head away from the windows. Thao waited a moment, but Julian was focused on the force outside, letting him know that there was no time for goodbyes.

So he ran hidden through the building to the first floor and found his way to the back door again, hiding himself from view and waiting for his cue to book it across the rear opening. Then came the gunfire, and immediately the men arrayed outside drove around the front of the building to assist their teammates. He prayed Julian was all right and vowed that his sacrifice was not made in vain. He would get to the bottom of this, no matter what.

* * *

The teams out front watched the windows for any sign of movement. They saw nothing, but knew Thao had to be in there. Then, through the stair well windows they saw their target slowly descending to meet them in the front. A forward team of two men crouched near the main entrance with the controls to the remote-controlled camera they were rolling through the building like a small race car with a lens for a windshield. With the ground floor search bearing no fruit, it was directed toward the elevator shaft, where upon passing the staircase it was crushed and the feed scrapped. After the initial attempts at reviving it failed, the commander just stared at the forward team from behind his vehicle cover, to which they simply shrugged their shoulders in response.

Another long fifteen seconds went by before the commander signaled another pair to back up the forward guys and make entry. That is when he heard the whoosh of a rocket propelled grenade and had the concussive blast of it impacting the vehicle next to him knock him from his feet head first into the door to his van.

There was a daze at first, with gunfire erupting in several directions. The men near him had their heads explode from pinpoint weapons fire from within the building. He thought it was a sniper, but the rate of fire was too fast. They were being gunned down at range while everyone else ran around in chaos.

When his hearing started to zone back in, he saw the two forward teams make entry. So he grabbed his shotgun and started to truck toward them, planning to end this as abruptly as it began.

* * *

Julian used up his entire magazine to great effect. The weapons he grabbed from a hidden cache earlier proved useful, but of course, they weren't enough. After taking down an entire team, several of the flood lamps, and scattering the rest into cover, he heard the two forward teams running through the doorway just meters to his left. He hoped they didn't know how close he really was, because for this to work, timing was everything, and distance made the timing.

He ran for the doorway to find the men panning out. Through the chaos outside, they could barely hear his footsteps as he neared the first guard. And right when the guard looked, Julian leapt and landed on his shoulders, wrapping his legs around the man's head that was now buried in his crotch and bent backwards to reach over his own head and unholster the officer's side arm. Then he anchored back and used his free hand as a brace to flip the man over, crushing his head into the floor like some of those archaic pro-wrestling vids Samme got from one of their OZ missions.

Instantly he perked up and nailed the remaining three guards, POP, POP, POP! He then ran and scooped up the lead man's pistol and emerged through the doors in a sideways dive, pumping round after round into the remaining flood lamps from both his guns and relegating the remainder of the lighting to the front building to the vehicle's headlights.

Then he rolled behind a garbage structure, built from reinforced aluminum, which was enough to stop most small arms fire, and peered around the far corner. He saw a few fuel drums, probably empty or near it, ten meters behind the far vehicle. So, in a quick firing pattern, he peppered the drums to no effect. Having wasted the ammo, he abandoned that strategy and instead charged the last vehicle itself quick enough to retain the initiative, keeping it between him and the drums in case one of the rounds was still hot enough in some fuel for that heat he so desperately needed.

Gunfire hailed around him as the commander yelled for them to cease their firing. Apparently they wanted him alive, and this could be used to his advantage, if he didn't kill himself first. The drums suddenly went off and took the vehicle he was heading for out. He hit the ground flat just in time as the van rolled in the air over him, and sprung to life with both pistols blazing at the men caught behind the next van.

His aim was on, but the mags ran empty and he was on his own from here on out. Already two men were rushing in from his right as the last of the officers got berated for their continued cover fire.

Julian reacted and ducked under the first man, catching him and throwing him into the flaming remains of the barrel pieces that made their way over in the explosion. But the maneuver took too long, and the second man pounded him in the stomach.

With the wind partially knocked out of him, Julian surprised the man by taking a step in instead of away and followed up with a palm strike uppercut to the man's chin, probably shattering some teeth and snapping his head back in traumatic fashion. He had just enough time to grab the man's midsection and push it between him and the lead man now rushing for him.

At least six men were closing in at full speed, with just the first dealing with the limp body of the unconscious guard. So he charged, and took the first one down with a leaping stomp kick to the chest, folding the man in half and sending him back in the direction he came from. But the man to his right kicked his rear leg out from under him upon landing, sending his balance back and his body right into the grip of the aggressor.

The officer then bear hugged him from behind to allow the next three men to close and pick a location to nail. Julian reacted by timing the first impact just right and nailed the man's hands around his chest hard enough to break this clasp and ducked, forcing the blow intended for his face by the group ahead to impact the man's head behind him instead. Then he bent down and grabbed the foot of the unfortunate person through his own legs and lifted it quick enough to send him to the ground faster than he probably would have preferred.

An impact to the back sent Julian staggering forward before he could reap the benefit of already dispatching two of the group out for his head, with a forearm to the face as a follow up. Another fist to his temple split his vision in two and he managed to get three fingers into the throat of the person to his left, sending him back coughing. _Just two more before--_ His entire body was lifted from the ground and thrown into the mass of bodies running for him making up the remainder of the forces here. On the ground, he was kicked and hammered into submission, with him only able to arch back and kick one man in the face and grab another's shin and use his forearm to break his knee.

Just three more down out of the mess didn't cut it, and it wasn't long before he blacked out from blunt force trauma. He couldn't even remember the last thing he saw, but he was hoping he was right about them wanting him alive…

* * *

In her cell, Bree awoke again for probably the sixth time this day. Her circadian rhythm was completely off, but something else woke her this time. She again started listening to the walls to figure out what it was to no effect.

But at some point, she didn't so much as hear something as she felt it. Maybe, through the reinforced steel she sensed the footsteps of a man, shadowed in defeat. His energy… it was great enough for her to sense. She could only picture him with his head down, but still thinking. No one had that aura around them without the will to continue craving success. Defeat or not, she knew one of the two men she hoped would have made it out of this mess was moments from being locked in a cell much like her own. She felt a bad taste form in her mouth, one that seemed more sour every time she thought about it.


	4. Chapter Three: Witch Hunt

**CHAPTER ****THREE****: ****WITCH HUNT**

Three days ago this situation would have never entered the minds of the seven mechwarriors heading toward the capital city of Butler to intercept Lyran invaders. This was a Jade Falcon invasion, one that was years in the making. Who would've thought that during a civil war with the strongest successor state, the Lyrans would pull resources to counter-invade the Jade Falcon Occupation Zone after they crossed over?

Three of the Star Colonel's trinaries were sent to Derf, which seemed like madness at first to keep him with the smaller portion of his unit. But when he learned they were really pulled to help defend Twycross, he understood the overall strategy. While that sounded like fun, he was glad he had stayed behind because the capital of the Butler theatre was now under attack, and he was determined to make a grand stand.

His tech crew reported two forces of Lyrans converging on the city, one from the east, and one from the south. Because his command trinary was more familiar with the southern area, he stationed himself to intercept the one force while Star Captain Xel's trinary held up in the city proper.

But, as he hated himself for not seeing earlier, the southern force was just two measly lances sent to divert his troops, with the rest of them not far behind the first city team, outnumbering Xel's trinary in odds he did not want to think about. So, he left enough men behind to dispose of the diversion while booking it to the capital city, where he tried to get constant updates to determine his best point of entry. His _Executioner _was not particularly fast, especially when compared to his previously preferred 'mech, but his unit stayed in formation around him so that when they hit, they could hit hard.

_"Star Colonel! We have been outmaneuvered. I pulled Alpha and Bravo Stars in to set up a new line, but the fighting has actually breached the city. Now the chance of civilian casualties is extremely high."_

Zellbrigen was already abandoned in the city fight. It was unsure whether the Lyrans started with it or not, but once inside the city proper they concentrated fire to topple some taller buildings on some of Xel's troops when the opportunity presented itself. While distasteful, it was extremely effective.

What he saw on approach was mayhem, as several fires in the combat corner of the city spread slowly, engulfing the sky above it in dark smoke. "Star Captain Xel, where is the bulk of your opposition?"

_"Here, I highlighted a nav point for reference. They have several assault 'mechs and two medium support lances that are running through the streets taking pot shots at our rear."_

The thought of some freebirths running amok in medium 'mechs, successfully flanking his units insulted him. They were Jade Falcon, and they would be victorious in this invasion if they had to fight to the last man standing. Or so he kept telling himself.

To his left he saw something come out of the tree line, and instantly he addressed his unit, "There they are! Engage them at max range until we enter the city through that roadway at bearing 1-3-6."

Still lumbering away was his _Executioner_, as he saw from his right several PPC bolts and the dim visual touch of several autocannon rounds heading toward the advancing Lyran 'mechs. Some of the rounds hit, but more importantly, it forced them to slow down and reassess their entry route, which he would exploit. He needed every second once he hit the city proper, which was in just a few moments now.

The buildings were tall; tall enough to engulf his 95-ton war machine. But he was used to running through open terrain, and suddenly having surfaces rush by your cockpit from thirty meters away made you seem like you are running much faster than you were.

The remainder of his trinary fanned out, with the winners of the duels behind challenging the Lyran victors until one was standing last, like real warfare should be. So he was with just six of his men, but they did well. He maneuvered through some intersections completely devoid of vehicles and followed the sounds and flashes of the battle ahead until he knew he was within range to load the short-range warheads into his ATM launchers. Being a Star Colonel, he had the luxury of taking advantage of the more recent acquisitions by his clan, including weapons technology.

He slowed, and turned his torso to the left so that when he hit what was a central park area, he would be pointing down-range. And when he popped out, the world was an entirely different painting than he imagined. He nonetheless fired his 18-missile salvo into the nearest Lyran 'mech, hitting just over half of his shot and blowing more armor off the unsuspecting _Bushwacker _he thought he could with missiles alone.

The Lyran 'mech instantly altered course for cover as the smoking holes in its left torso left an obvious trail behind it sifting through the air. But his real concern was the topography. His men were in a bad spot, and he showed up much later than he wanted to if he knew how bad it was before he got here.

_"Sir! An assault unit hit us from the east and hit the gas pipelines running in that area. Some buildings collapsed and it cut our exit off that way."_

"Exit? We are not leaving Star Captain."

_"That is not what I meant. But we can only maneuver west of this position."_

"There is not much of anything west of this position. I just came from there."

_"Exactly."_

The tone used irritated him, but this was no time to argue with his men. He needed to salvage this situation, and quick. That meant initiative. And that meant relocating. "Everyone! Go southwest and regroup. Form a defensive and get the faster units clustered behind the heavier ones."

_"Aff!"_ The response came in from multiple 'mechs at once as they started moving at the same time to another cluster of abandoned buildings. He was not used to urban warfare as much as he would like to be. The clans avoided it whenever possible, trying to keep collateral and casualties to an absolute minimum. Not that he particularly cared for freeborn civilians, but with the clans' inherent range advantage and targeting computers, open terrain almost always favored them more. Sadly, he had no choice of venue here, forcing him to kill spheroids in the presence of other spheroids.

On his way a building was hit from some kind of weapon's fire behind him and collapsed on one of his men piloting a _Nova_. He cursed in his head as the 'mech tried to limp its way out from under the wreckage, but failed. They kept moving and he knew they had to turn around soon to face the oncoming threat when an explosion to his left sent debris from another building into his cockpit windshield and more of it into the _Warhawk_ behind him. Its left arm was damaged, and he was now getting very frustrated.

Turning around he noticed a heavy lance of Lyran 'mechs laying waste to the road around him, nailing the bases of buildings and abandoned vehicles in their wake. It did not take long to chew the ground surrounding him to rubble, but it would take a lot more than that to slow him down. That much he assured himself.

The upper floors of a building down a block to his right were hit by stray fire, forcing some of them to collapse in on themselves and causing a flood of people to evacuate from the ground floor. This must've been one of the main holdout buildings. He kept an eye on it while picking targets for his men to concentrate on. And upon finishing his initial battle-plan, he witnessed two more stories in that building collapse, causing the initial debris to crush over a dozen civilians and enshroud the area in dust. The screams were so loud that they came through on his external mic, which was not a good thing. No emergency response was going to happen, not with the roadways ordered empty. He wished they would simply shut up so he could concentrate easier on the task at hand, but the screaming was fairly constant from here on out.

A burst of concentrated Lyran fire hit his unit, doing the most damage to the _Summoner_ behind him. Both its AC 10 and its PPC were now off-line, making it nearly useless offensively. He cursed again in his head, but kept aiming and firing, watching his heat.

Two of his heavy units ahead were nearly out of ammo and had to use their lasers more than he preferred on shots that were likely not to hit.

But then another explosion went off from underground. It must've been the gas pipelines that ran under the streets, as it went off right under the evacuating people and caused instant mayhem on the streets to his right.

Another shot took out the gyro of the already defunct _Summoner _behind him and sent it to the ground. Mechwarrior Wheaton dismounted and was instantly swarmed in a sea of civilians making their way from a damaged building behind.

He got his men forward for better firing arcs when Wheaton came in over the comm., _"Star Colonel, there are bodies everywhere! Oh shit, we need a lot of assistance here."_

"I am kind of in the middle of a battle now Mechwarrior, if you remember." He kept on firing and noticed that the Lyrans, who could not find as effective ground, were finally retreating.

_"Understood. I just--"_ And the sound of an explosion behind him overloaded the mic for a moment. It took a few more moments for Wheaton to come through over the screams of people around him. _"I cannot see! The blood, it is everywhere! My eyes… Shit, I think the roadway is collapsing--!" _And a deep rumble ended his transmission.

The shock of the update set him up for the next tragedy, which came in the form of ordinance pummeling the back of his 'mech and sending the damage readout to his right into chaos. Suddenly, an explosion so concussive that it instantly deafened him threw his 'mech violently into the building to his right. The second impact with the building saw him slam his head so hard into the panel next to him that it knocked him cold. With his actual hearing shocked to impotence, all he could hear was the screaming of the people below echoing through his mind…

He awoke what seemed like a lifetime later. In reality it was only several minutes, as his cockpit instruments had no problem informing him. But it surely didn't seem like several minutes. The almost musical sounds of war were absent now, replaced with the muffled screams of running civilians in the distance. Several wooden structures crackled from the fire engulfing them in the background while two random explosions in the distance started to audibly paint a landscape for him. His 'mech was on the ground having collapsed after that last hit and subsequent pilot blackout. With it on its side, he could finally focus his view and see people in the distance running frantically in several directions.

Another explosion, this one quite near, rocked his 'mechs chassis just a bit. He was going through every step possible to raise it again, but it was simply damaged too much to move. So, with a scowl, he unstrapped his harness to lean forward and get a better look down the street. As he did so the radio buzzed to life to allow the voice of a Lyran commander boom in his ear, _"Commander, dismount your 'mech and meet your unit at the next intersection east of your location."_

"What…?" he asked, very confused as to why this savashri freebirth was giving him orders.

_"You have lost the battle. Dismount your 'mech and proceed to the next intersection."_

He switched channels to raise the rest of his unit, desperately going faster and faster until he realized that none of his men were responding to his requests.

"What happened?!" he screamed back at the voice, starting to panic at having completely lost control over the situation.

_"Your second in command surrendered your forces while you were unconscious. You have lost."_

_How dare this 'voice' tell me I have lost!_ "Do not lie to me you unworthy defect."

_"Look around. Your unit was flanked by an assault lance and therefore outnumbered on all sides. He had to make a choice to either sacrifice both the lives of your men and all these people around, or surrender and save as many as we can. I already have response teams inbound for the wounded."_

"Who cares about the wounded? This is not over between us! Come down here and we shall finish this hand to hand, do you hear me?"

A silence followed as he squinted to help him clarify the view of two of his mechwarriors on foot helping an elderly lady out from some rubble. Then finally, a response, _"What a shame it is that you would choose to sacrifice everyone here for just one more moment of battle. I decline your offer and declare you property of the Lyran Alliance Armed Forces. Stay in your 'mech and watch for all I care. We will come for you when we see fit."_

He didn't know what angered him more: the fact that he passed out and lost the battle because his subordinate Star Captain was a closet case philanthropist, or the fact that his men were out there with the Lyran responders helping the pathetic bystanders that got caught in this combat.

For a moment he considered bondsref, but decided that if he had this much hate to burn, his death would be wasteful, no matter where he would spend the next while. Because when this anger worked its way out, he was confident no prison could hold him.

If he only knew what awaited him in captivity, and the effect it would have on his mind, he would have reconsidered. He just may have chosen death.

Three days ago this entire situation was unfathomable, to have his clan castrated from behind in the midst of a war, the very thing he was bred for. _I cannot believe it,_ he thought. _Never in a thousand years…_

* * *

_…have I ever imagined this happening. _Tech Reana reacted to the needler rounds punching into the bulkhead next to her by thrusting her weightless body across the corridor to the other side quick enough to let the marines behind her through. Chaos rang out in every direction as the invading forces somehow managed multiple 'faux' breaches to throw off the Falcon responders. When the security forces made their way to the next breach, the invaders hit them with gas grenades, incapacitating huge numbers of crew and security alike. What was once a very large, functioning crew was quickly relegated to frantic pockets of confused people, both marine and crew alike.

She knew one thing for sure: she had to get word to Falcon command, immediately. Before everything got hot and noisy, the bridge was unable to contact anyone outside the ship itself. It looked like both the main HPG relay and the backup were either destroyed or crippled, so they were isolated from the rest of the universe for a short time.

Ahead in the corridor she saw three invaders wearing gas masks engage a pair of Falcon security forces, with the range so close that rifle butts and fists were being thrown instead of ammunition. She decided it was best to move in that direction as opposed to the other one, which echoed gunfire and screaming without pause.

She pulled herself faster and faster up the hand-lines until the sight of an elemental using its propulsion jets rocketed past the opening ahead. That was when she knew the state of this vessel was much worse than originally thought.

But instead of shrinking in the cramped world around her, she mustered that arrogant Falcon pride they were all known for and clawed her way to the junction. The fighting marines were incapacitated now and another invader backed around the corner and fired a gas grenade into the hallway before him. These men, wearing plain combat uniforms and gas masks just moved on, unconcerned with a mere tech trying to escape the combat.

With a grunt and enough determination to drown out another explosion to her right, she burst across the perpendicular corridor into the access shaft that allowed her to move to the next level. She spun as she reached out for the guidance ropes at the other end, hearing the thwips of needler rounds darting past her face and hitting more of her crewmates in the distance.

Once inside the shaft, she moved up and hoped that the fighting had passed the outer level she was heading for, but was more annoyed than saddened to find that it hadn't. Gas was working its way down the right side of the new corridor in front of a lone invader. Reana adjusted her course and worked her way in the opposite direction as the sight of a Falcon elemental emerging from the smoke like the mythical figure with which it was named to impale the faceless gunman with its mechanized claw gave her a moment of relief.

There seemed to be no respite as her head turned to face her travelling direction to see another Falcon marine slam into the bulkhead from another corridor. He had no time to move before an invading elemental appeared and crushed him with the weight of its armor suit.

She knew she had no time to let herself get in the way of these two armored titans who were surely going to wreck the place in attempts to kill each other. Pulling herself along the ceiling Reana noticed the hum of the firing anti-air turrets on the hull cease, followed by several security doors dropping open.

_Shit! They must've gotten the bridge already!_ She made her way to the door she was aiming for all along when the two elementals behind her clanged in impact. They opted to go hand to hand and not risk puncturing the walls with their mounted machine guns.

Once in the last hallway things got quieter. The warning klaxons behind her faded and no screams made their way from the mouths of the corpses floating ahead. Blood was making its way out from several of the bodies, Falcons and insurgents alike in clouds of droplets, enshrouding parts of the bodies themselves in a red mist and trailing behind them as they spun about randomly.

She thanked the heavens when she found one of the shuttle bay doors open. The lifeboat vessel was definitely not an object of escape for her, not with all those aerospace fighters outside. But the search beacon transmitters on these things were powerful. Powerful enough to eventually penetrate the transmission blackout and reach another naval star.

Wedging herself in the command chair, she brought up the menus that would activate the beacon. A prompt asked her if she would like to send an additional text with the signal to be encrypted and transmitted, and she hit 'yes'.

Suddenly, she smelled something sweet. The odor crept into her nostrils slowly before her face started to go numb. She looked back and saw an air vent in the corridor behind her writhe with thin tentacles of the smoke they were using to subdue the crew. They must've gotten to life support and started to circulate it throughout parts of the ship. That was not good…

She typed in the simple message that she knew needed to get out.

**ET-41 Nl overran. Enemy forces have full access. Crew disabled.**

She got lightheaded and started to nod off when she swung her numbing arm into the panel housing the button to start the transmission. Her vision blurred as the progress bar to the encryptor swiftly filled and a percentage marker climbed telling her how much of the transmission was complete.

When it hit 100, it started to blink, but she only saw it disappear. The sweet, calming call of sleep finally pushed the world away, and she only felt animosity toward the forces that would take the sting of defeat away from her. It was that sting that would come back a thousand fold when she awoke.

* * *

Kael Pershaw used to hate deception and mind games. Being a warrior, such things were overlooked in training to make the perfect 'mech pilots. A straight up, small scale ancient Greek style of warfare resulted.

But when his body took a dive, he started to rely on his mental prowess to win battles. Battles of any kind: be them in the field, or political. And did he ever detest politics.

Over the years, though he would never admit it out loud, he started to enjoy his mental abilities. Playing with people's heads just to see their reaction was something he did anymore when bored, like in a waiting room or in the chow hall.

Now, in his holding tank, he sat and stared at the wall left of the door. For no real reason he just concentrated on a single spot while contemplating his situation. The guards outside were dumfounded when trying to figure out what was so interesting about that wall. And when they got tired of thinking about it, they just assumed he was growing senile and let it be. But he was interested. That wall stood still no matter how hard you stared it down. He was contemplating every angle of attack, every piece of history that can be used against him, every conceivable lie that could be used to skew the nature of his operations. He was at one point able to justify everything done under his care, and he had to find a way to project that to the clan council properly.

Alas, he was not a good speaker, and resolved to be like the wall: unmoving. A true warrior knows that there is substance behind one who never wavers.

* * *

The shop Thao broke into had been closed down for some time. Some useless items were left in there, but they were in disarray and caked in dust. It may have been a detail shop of some kind for automobiles, or a paint shop for other things that size, but he really didn't care. He just needed to get out of the cold rain for a bit, which had completely soaked through his clothes. After giving his jacket to Julian to pose as him and allow his getaway, he found out how much he really would have liked to have kept it.

He sat in the corner near the front window, going over his options again and again, finding a reason not to pursue each one every time. This was what Kael taught him to be the Socratic Method.

He would not track his team down, because he knew they were not held by the Katyusha security forces, and therefore had no clue as to their location. Other members of his former unit would probably be distributed all over Sigma Galaxy by now, and without access to a master directory and transportation off Strana Mechty, pursuing them was out of the question.

He kept studying the picture Shale kept for him, but he couldn't figure out its ultimate meaning. His trinary was just built from other transfers to replacing the one lost previously in that cluster. Only six faces were scrubbed out, with another four having X's over them. Berkau was definitely marked off the picture, along with close members of his unit. Thao's face was fine. In fact, his entire trinary was untouched, though Berkau's was scribbled all over. Shale was himself one of the few that were not defaced among them. The Star Colonel's face was simply circled for some reason, though no notation told him why. It was really useless as far as he was concerned, but knew it had some kind of relevance to this whole thing.

The only person with enough connections to make heads or tails out of it would be Kael Pershaw himself, who was also detained and most likely kept at a separate location. While he could not justify finding the rest of the unit, reward of finding his CO just slightly outweighed the risk of capture, making it difficult to justify. But no matter how much he tried to think of an alternative, this had the best shot at blowing open so many questions riding through his head.

So, with his course of action determined, he had to find out where Kael was, and that meant possibly interrogating one of these Falcon security forces trying to hunt him down. But that had its own risks involved. So he tried exhausting his only other chance at figuring out his destination, which lead him back here.

He exited the building and saw Eric's repair shop down the street. He had a feeling he would end up here again eventually anyway, so he just camped out close to save him the walk later. Call it years of problem solving resulting in a certain amount of intuition.

The shop's light was on, but Eric was nowhere to be seen. Thao took special notice that Eric claimed it was closed several hours ago yet it still looked open. So he took the time to work his way around to the back door, just out of caution.

That door was indeed locked, which made his entry all the more difficult. Luckily, he was actually getting pretty good at picking locks anymore since he had to do it so many times in the last 24 hours. Nothing beats experience.

Once inside, he tried to get into a shadow so he could pause and relish the shelter from the storm again. It died down a lot from earlier, but the wind still cut through the wet clothing like razors.

He made his way further in and decided to take his wet shoes off to eliminate the noise of his movements. Despite it feeling damn good to shed those things, a widened sense of agility overcame him, a kind of surprising yet accepted bonus. Further up the hall he found a room with its light on, with the door's position nearly closed allowing just a crack of light to escape across the hallway floor. Beyond that were the main assembly rooms, which he had seen before.

He approached the lit room and tried to peer in through the cracked opening. After his right eye adjusted, he decided that it was too narrow a field of vision to tell anything. So he slowly opened the door and visibly froze in shock at the sight of Eric, beaten and bound to a chair in the center of the room. His face was battered up pretty bad and blood from his mouth must've run down into his lap because he was sitting in a pool of it.

Under normal circumstances, whatever those were after a day like this, he would retreat and do more recon before deciding a course of action. But Eric did not lift his head, or make any movements indicating he was even breathing. Thao had to make sure he was alive. If he had risked the death of one more innocent person today he would lose it on the spot.

He made his way into the room as quickly and silently as he could, the wet surface of his socks making just a small number of audible slaps on the concrete floor. He approached Eric and knelt down, slowly lifting his head to examine his throat.

Relief overwhelmed Thao's face as Eric slowly opened his eyes to show he was alive. His throat was surprisingly unscathed, though he couldn't speak due to the gag in place. Thao tried to remove it when he noticed a shadow shift behind him.

He turned to see what it was when several thousand volts of electricity surged through his body, screaming the light in the ceiling to pure white and sending his body into convulsions. He completely lost physical control and hit the concrete, shaking all the while and trying to scream but failing. The pain started in his back and made its way to his brain, searing hot and cold at the same time.

Through his shaking he could make out two figures in another doorway to the room, one standing up and the other in front of him on one knee. He had a taser gun pointed at him, and though it answered the immediate question, he blacked out before even contemplating the scope of the larger one.

The unconsciousness was welcoming, as the fire subsided and waves of aether washed over him, welcoming him to the void. At least here he could get some rest, though the waves were too heavy to allow him thought. It was just a ride from here out.

* * *

The Jade Falcon clan hall on Strana Mechty was dimly lit, allocating most of the light to the ring around the center of the large circle. In the center was a raised dais for the Khan, saKhan, immediate staff, and Loremaster. Around it though were the spaces reserved for the Inquisitor, Advocate, and parties being charged. This was the also known as the 'ring of fire' for those familiar with Jade Falcon proceedings. Since most of the regular clan councils happened on Ironhold, this space was fairly unfamiliar to most of the bloodnamed warriors entering.

Marthe Pryde sat in the center with two of her staff members, having saKhan Samantha Clees in the Occupation Zone to keep immediate authority on hand there. Had Marthe obtained advance warning about this, she would have held it on Ironhold, panning the prep time out for Kael Pershaw and the Advocate, who this time was Star Colonel Arimas Malthus.

Since Kael Pershaw was the subject of this council, and the charged party in the trial, Galaxy Commander Rosendo Hazen stepped up to temporarily fill in the rank of Loremaster for the proceeding. He would be needed to keep things in order and make sure all laws and customs are adhered to. Marthe suddenly felt glad she brought him back to the homeworlds with her from their last tour abroad.

The new face was Star Colonel Dev Iler, an aging but still fairly intimidating warrior. He was not an elemental phenotype, yet towered over his peers and had been mistaken for one more times than not.

He was a once disgraced commander who has since worked his way through the political ranks with impressive shows of efficiency and drive. He was the example of one who was bitten by tragedy and suffered failures not from his lack of leadership, but unfortunate circumstances beyond control. Every time he would be disgraced, he got back up and proved everyone wrong on their assumptions of inadequacy. In his role as Inquisitor, he stood donned with a full ceremonial leather uniform, complete with cape and helmet. Since he was in the ring, the lights reflected off his helmet to bring a certain luminescence to him. Unlike most, he kept it on until the trial started.

He stood the entire time, not enjoying the hard seat that so many others had retired to. All morning bloodnamed warriors from across the Kerensky Cluster filed in, filling the seated circle around the center with more bodies than this place has probably seen in decades. For the short notice of the proceedings, the showing was impressive to say the least.

With time counting down to the scheduled proceeding, the room went from a quiet assembly to a quick hush as the doors opened and Star Colonel Kael Pershaw entered under escort. Every eye was on him as he lumbered his near artificial leg next to his not much better real one to the chair he was given. Behind him were prominent members of the unit in question, the 32nd Special Operations Unit, A.K.A. the Nighthawks. Its commanders and a small number of subordinates followed him in and took their seats. The lead seat, held for their Star Captain in charge of the centerpiece 'mech trinary, was left empty in his absence.

Dev Iler waited for the acting Loremaster to announce the beginning of the council, and uttered the sacred words to initiate this time-honored tradition.

Then it was Dev's turn to slowly remove his helmet and expose in full those piercing eyes of his. They fit his posture perfectly, with a slightly pointed nose and jet-black hair slicked back into a short ponytail, he stood tall and rigid, like an actual falcon in an ivory mold. "Let it be known the reason Star Captain Thao Prentice is not present for the proceeding."

Arimas Malthus, standing next to Kael Pershaw spoke up to address the warriors around, "He was not detained by the called council's enforcement staff."

Dev almost started talking almost before Malthus finished his sentence, "And he did not show after knowing of such a council?"

Malthus shot a look back at him, and straightened his own posture, "It is any bloodnamed warrior's right to refuse attendance to a clan council if circumstances permit. He was not informed of his involvement in the proceedings themselves."

"But he was on leave here, quiaff? Or did he purposefully elude the team sent to retrieve him?"

"If your team had been efficient, we would not be having this dialogue right now."

Sensing his first of hopefully many victories by the faces of the arrayed warriors, Arimas Malthus kept his own straight, knowing that Dev was right. But he dodged his first blow by exposing incompetence. These little hints would be infinitely helpful later on.

"Yes, which leads me to one of many points today. His training in espionage and deceitfulness has served him well, and allowed him to temporarily escape judgment by the righteous will of the Clan."

Now the confusion set in among several of the viewers. While some heard hints of what this was about, the rest came on pure curiosity, knowing that Kael Pershaw was on trial and for crimes they were told could not be broadwaved over multi-clan space.

"Enough. This council will move according to written doctrine. Deviate again and there will be repercussions." Rosendo Hazen's voice boomed through the hall, concreting his figure as one of authority and providing a change of pace to those used to Kael's soft, yet painfully piercing words. His creepiness and demand for respect allowed him to act one way, but Rosendo had to prove himself using his own style.

Vid monitors were arrayed on the ceiling panels of the hall. The ceiling itself was a dome, and the screens, instead of being flat and hanging from the center like so many other halls, actually curved inward to conform to the dome's inside surface. Four of them were there, allowing each of the warriors arrayed to see the speaker's face up close, whoever they were. Numerous cameras were arrayed, mostly unseen, that could track and transmit anyone who was allowed to speak. The vid pictures could also be transmitted to the personal screens of the attendants if they so wished. A holographic projector was in the center of the ceiling to provide further, three-dimensional evidence if need be. It was rarely used, but today, it may provide a certain flavor to a relatively dull process.

"The charges brought forth," Rosendo started, "accuse Star Colonel Kael Pershaw, head of the Falcon Watch and overseer to the 32nd Special Operations Unit, and the unit itself, of war crimes including the second degree murder of 2.5 million non-combatants."

Now the faces of near all the warriors watching dropped, showing shock, disbelief, and complete surprise. If information like this were not done in secret, clan space itself would be converging on Jade Falcon held worlds, with the perfect excuse to disenfranchise the clan as a whole.

* * *

In the 3rd Battle Cluster's briefing room on Strana Mechty, Star Commander Hark watched the proceedings from his monitor. His commander, Maraig Binetti was in the council itself, but she had let him watch the proceedings before to groom him for clan practices when he himself gets a bloodname. While being an inquisitor or advocate was seen as a waste of time for most warriors, being pulled to play politics in something that does not concern them, he knew that a strong warrior voice and proper presentation in any proceeding would help his credibility, which was important for the 3rd Battle Cluster, the clan's Honor Guard unit.

Some other members of his unit were behind him, which he would have removed from the room if he were not shocked into silence at the charges arrayed against their Loremaster and clan-wide infamous Kael Pershaw. People died every day, especially freebirths, but this reeked of foul play. And knowing how close he worked with the khan, this could have broad repercussions.

Little did Hark know, somehow the vid feed was split before his briefing room's terminal, sending it over to the general transmission hub, and allowing several Jade Falcon planets around to view it. While there was a time delay through the satellite systems and naval hubs, almost half of the Falcon units in the Kerensky Cluster had access to it. What made it so interesting was having near all of their bloodnamed commanders jump at the opportunity to attend an emergency council. So curiosity won the day and more Falcons saw the council live than any in history.

* * *

"At first glance, the incident which grounds this case seems fanciful and implausible. So, to keep the seriousness and professional nature of the business here consistent, I will provide a brief history of the unit." Then Dev looked at Rosendo, "To give credibility and understanding to the current situation."

"Stick to the facts," Rosendo warned. With which Dev just nodded his head and started the holoprojector in the middle of the chamber.

The projector had an image of Lathan Crichell, and codex achievements listed beside him from his units and exploits.

"In 3057, the late Khan Vandervahn Chistu ordered Star Colonel Lathan Crichell to have his fire support elements execute a fire mission on Ulric Kerensky. This act ended the Trial of Refusal between the Wolf and Jade Falcon clans. For his obedience in such a dishonorable endeavor, Khan Chistu formed a new unit, called the 32nd Special Operations Unit, to answer directly to him. While the official mandate was destroyed, the unit's actions, under newly promoted Galaxy Commander Lathan Crichell, resulted in deceit, theft, several enemy infiltrations, two assassinations, sixteen abductions, and an attempt at baiting the Lyran Alliance into violating the fifteen year Tukayyid Truce."

He waited for either the crowd to react or Rosendo to stop him. Neither really happened, and Kael Pershaw's face was as emotionless as ever.

"Upon Chistu's death, Elias Crichell assigned them to the Steel Viper held worlds in our occupation zone, letting them infiltrate and collect years worth of data concerning the other clan's activities and allowing them to disrupt certain operations when the Vipers made too much progress in pre-determined areas.

"Under Marthe Pryde, the units stayed active in their roles, continuing to execute most of the mentioned activities within this time.

"In 3059, Lathan Crichell returned to the homeworlds with part of his unit and ordered to the Falcon Eyrie base on Huntress to assist in defense if need be, and provide any distanced Intel he were to observe regarding the fake SLDF's activities and troop components."

Dev had a dramatic pause to help his presentation, then continued, " He never reported to the Falcon Eyrie base. Official reports said his dropship was shot down upon entry, but another, more recent development outside the boarders of the Kerensky Cluster have brought his name up again, suggesting conspiracy and collusion with the Smoke Jaguar Scientist General--"

"That is all speculation," Rosendo interrupted.

"Aff. I apologize." Dev reset himself and continued. "After the Steel Viper incursion of 3061, Marthe Pryde called the remainder of the unit together to find most of them either killed or captured by the Steel Viper Watch, never to be found again. Investigations on the occupied worlds turned up stories of sabotage and black bag operations. It was deemed unworthy of Falcon ranks and disbanded. Until Star Colonel Kael Pershaw asked for its reinstatement in 3066.

"The mission statement had changed from a foggy, uncertain mess to the official status of 'Offensive Information Warfare Unit'. While it sounded glamorous, it nonetheless continued its previous atrocities."

"You must provide proof, Inquisitor." Hazen was again pulling in the reigns.

"Yes, Loremaster." The projection changed from its previous image to that of Kenton. "This image was taken from the Kerensky's Blues, our resident _Fredasa_ class warship. Star Colonel Kael Pershaw ordered it from its post to jump to a Lagrange point in the Lyran periphery to extract his team. The planet of Kenton was home to over three million residents of Psyonic Syndications Incorporated, a private entity within the Lyran Alliance. PSI instituted a state of emergency and the LAAF responded with a naval blockade. When the 32nd penetrated the blockade, Lyran command had found their presence to be an operational security risk of the highest level and initiated their top level containment procedure."

The image spinning in the center of the chamber changed to reflect five swirling cloud images on its surface.

"Thermal readings from the warship indicate massive nuclear fallout. Zooming in to the assumed central population centers resulted in no known human activity or survivors." The image showed the zoomed recon, using infrared and high resonance readings, both of which showed thousands of cooling bodies strewn along the landscape, but none surviving. It panned from the blast craters to the outskirts of the cities.

"How can this be pinned to the Nighthawks, Inquisitor?" Hazen again kept the presentation grounded.

"Easy. The inhabitants apparently intercepted a transmission from the on-site Lyran commander and tried to send it back to Kowloon. The Lyran naval forces erased the authentication codes from the satellite ring surrounding the planet, but didn't intercept the message entirely. It ended up retransmitting to each satellite in sequence after hitting a wall every time it attempted to outward transmit, and is probably still doing it today."

Every screen in the hall lit up with the message Kirsa had sent to the Lyran Alliance proper. It also had Thames' personal message they intercepted from Brevan's data stick and the files of the experimented individuals.

_**To: Operational Command**_

_**From: Jeffrey Thames, Colonel, LAAF**_

_**Listed within this document are the results of random population infection. Each gender, age group, lifestyle, and treatment is recorded to provide the initial data of the virus Kerschell, A.K.A. The White Death.**_

_**Problems developed at several ground sites that prohibited the proper lockdown of the planet Kenton. It has been concluded that a foreign intelligence agency has made planet fall and attempted to weaponize said virus. It is imperative that we secure appropriate samples and data pertaining to symptoms and effects for immediate processing at an approved LAAF research facility within the Lyran Alliance proper.**_

_**If this virus has indeed fallen into enemy hands, this data will prove crucial to our cure development and proper identification of mass infection.**_

_**This information is classified and not to be shown to any personnel under security clearance level eight. All information therein is deniable under the Ethical Exceptions clause in the NBC (Nuclear, Biological, Chemical) Containment Protocol.**_

_**Supporting documentation is attached and will be sent prior to phase three of the ground operation.**_

_**I take full responsibility for civilian casualties and have personally ordered Operation: Whitewash into action. Please refer to LA code 14069b.4 when processing. Procedural orders strictly follow said protocol and protect me from consequential charges outside a private board panel assembled under the NBC Containment Protocol guidelines.**_

"The Fox class Warship seen in the surveillance footage was more than capable of carrying such a payload, and the files indicate regional infection with an astounding fatality rate. The virus in question was so potent, that when found weaponized by a foreign intelligence unit…" he paused to let everyone eye the Nighthawks arrayed before them, "the extermination of the remaining population was ordered. Had this unit of known despicable tactics not forcefully invaded their planet, those people would be alive today. Had they simply not been sloppy enough to get caught, this trial may not be underway."

"Advocate? Your response?"

Star Colonel Arimas Malthus stood up and addressed the warriors present. "Fellow warriors, this man intends to skew the facts and mislead you. Star Colonel Kael Pershaw had nothing to do with the previous incarnation of the 32nd, let alone its activities. Though, let it be known," and he stood a second to allow everyone listening to absorb the following details, "that it was that unit's Intel that formed the basis for the planning of our counterattacks against the Steel Vipers. We may have lost the occupation zone without them, as despicable as their actions were."

This prompted thought among many. The way this Intel was attained would probably sicken most of them, but none of them could fathom losing the OZ and being pushed from the Inner Sphere. It was, in essence, their entire reason for being here. It was their beachhead in the war of liberation.

"And the response on Kenton was not the result of the Nighthawks, but another unit that infiltrated the planet."

"Is there any evidence supporting this claim?" Rosendo asked.

"Aff. In testimony."

* * *

Lex Barret entered the hall quietly with only his boots echoing off the walls as everyone eyeballed him from afar. He was amazed at the construction of the place, having a deep emerald marble in the walls in streaks and the array of the monitors and holoprojector not intruding on its overall architectural majesty.

He was directed by Rosendo Hazen to take a seat at an empty enclosure in the ring of fire, which he did so. Not but a moment after he planted himself the Inquisitor approached, "State your name for the warriors assembled."

He realized he had to speak, but there was a sudden dryness in his throat. The members of the Nighthawks he knew were sitting before him, looking mostly defeated. "Dr. Alexander Ryan Barret."

"And your planet of origin?"

"I was born on Melissia."

Of course, he could not have expected the multiple grimaces around the hall at the mention of a natural birth. All the briefings in the world cannot put a stigma on what has been socially acceptable for thousands of years in all your known cultures, with this one exception.

"Born, yes. What was your specialty?"

"Microbiology."

"And what were you doing on Kenton?"

"I was hired by Psyonic Syndications Incorporated to head the biological research department in the backup lab in Danner. We were to study natural phenomena and safeguard the population from any crisis involving the planet itself."

"So, you worked for a private company. What was the situation prior to your introduction to the 32nd?" Dev moved around the enclosure with his hands behind his back. He had these questions fluidly memorized, which actually put a bit of pressure on Lex to respond in kind. He knew he was going to be used to disenfranchise the team that saved his family, and tried to steer clear of answering things in a way that would further incriminate it.

"The main non-vegetative food source suffered a massive spike in its mortality rate. They were dying off faster than we were replacing them."

"And you attributed this to a virus?"

"Not initially. It could have been any number of natural occurrences."

"Until Kenton City…"

Shocked that he knew as much as he did about the events on Kenton, Lex continued cautiously. "Yes. Something wiped out that entire region. Only some video footage made it out, with a communication recorded by the militia commander before he… died."

"This is when you made first contact?"

"No. I was heading up the auxiliary research center when I ran into a female member of the unit."

"Her name was Star Commander Ashley, and she was with the 26th."

"… yeah. Anyway, she showed up in time to help me out of the research complex before it exploded."

"Why would she save you before blowing up your center?"

Lex shot a look of distaste at Dev, knowing that he knew the truth and was now playing games with him, putting him on the defensive and trying to ruin his credibility. "She did not blow it up. There were other people there. She opened a route for me to escape."

"Ah, other people. How convenient. And who were these 'other people'?"

"I don't know."

Dev smiled as the contraction hit the nerves of some of the spectating warriors present. He expected one to slip out eventually.

"So, they could have been planetary militia? You claimed in your report that PSI militia showed up at the time of the explosion."

"Those were rogues. They broke off from the main militia because they thought the Lyrans were setting the entire thing up."

"Oh," Dev replied. "So these 'rogues' were against the Lyrans profiting from this unfortunate accident, and blew up the PSI research facility. This seems rather plausible, quiaff?"

Luckily, Lex had heard that phrase enough to be able to respond to it. "Yes," he said with a sigh. "But…"

"But what? What evidence do you have that the rogue militia units, with an obvious motive, were not behind all the activity there?"

Lex dropped his head, "None."

Dev smiled and moved on. "There were two Falcon Watch teams on planet. One landed before the other. You met a member of the first team, the 26th. But you eventually met a member of the other. Can you identify him here today?"

Lex hesitated, but then raised his hand and pointed to Julian, who looked pretty battered from his stand in Katyusha. Multiple bruises and a glaring cut on the left side of his face decorated it in a way some war documentaries would have portrayed him.

"When you followed him to his base camp, you found the scientists there to already have samples of the virus and a working understanding of its functionality. Is this correct?"

"Yes."

"But before, the Lyrans lost a considerable amount of troops to a weaponized version of this very same virus." He let his words sink in a moment. "How quickly do you think they were able to weaponize it?"

"They did not weaponize it. They were actively synthesizing a cure."

"Right. Something your scientists were unable to do. Yet they, only having been there for a few days, knew more about it than you did. Interesting."

Lex showed obvious frustration.

"After the team secured what they were looking for, they had to make it off planet. How was this done?"

"They took some trucks and loaded onto one of the departing dropships."

"Ah. And what happened to the people originally assigned to the trucks?"

Lex was getting agitated now, "They were killed." Some of the warriors looked angry, others were just absorbing this all. The death of freeborn contractors was not really getting under their skin. But then he continued, "By the team that was originally going to use them to get off planet. We came in and removed the killers so we could leave instead."

"Nice," Dev said with a smile. "And did you see the PSI crew members killed?"

"No."

"Then how can you prove, again, that this was another team? Was it not the rogues that you claimed earlier?"

"The way they fought, no way."

"Tell us then," Dev circled a little more, "What combat training experience have you had? And what real world combat have you been involved in?"

Looking confused, "None. Why?"

"I will be asking the questions here. Is it possible that due to the incompetence of the unit before you, that mere rogues, or even PSI contractors could mount such a resistance when faced with intentional murder?"

"Anyone fights to the death when threatened by it. That says nothing."

"It says everything."

He circled one more time before stopping and asking his final question, "By the way, how did the 32nd get to Kenton?"

"I believe they arrived in a Lyran assistance vessel."

"And… what did they do with the crew of that vessel?"

Now he was confused, but answered carefully, "I was not present, so I do not know."

"But you were with the Lyran military commander at the time, were you not? What did the report say?"

"The report was made hastily and warranted further investigation."

"_What did it say?_"

Looking angry at being forced to answer, "It said that the crew was dead."

"Dead in the crash, or murdered?"

Now the crowd looked intently on Lex, awaiting his answer. "The report just said dead."

"It did not specify how? I have the initial debrief you had upon entering the Kerensky's Blues, if you would like me to play it. Maybe your memory is unable to recall--"

"It said some were shot."

"Shot and killed? Like executed?"

"Not executed. Just shot."

"In the head, perhaps?"

Lex just sighed and sat there for a moment.

"You will answer the question," Rosendo pushed.

"Yes."

"So, they killed off a Lyran crew, landed, infiltrated your lab before it exploded, weaponized the virus, and then murdered their way off planet?"

"That is not what I said."

Dev then smiles, "But these events did happen nonetheless. And you cannot prove otherwise. Tell me, Lex, how many people were on Kenton before the LAAF was forced to destroy it?"

Lex took a deep breath, "Near three million."

"After dealing with Colonel Thames, do you believe he was capable of writing the noted message?"

"Yes."

"Then is it safe to say that the 32nd special operations unit's involvement in Lyran matters led him to that decision?"

Lex waited, trying to word it right, "If he knew it was them--"

"Did the involvement of a foreign intelligence unit who weaponized the virus force him to kill everyone on that planet?"

"Yes."

"And if there was no such unit?"

"They would probably still be alive." Lex hated to play into this. But he couldn't lie. Being a freeborn spheroid in a clan council was bad enough, he had to be assertive because any weakness on his part would hurt the Nighthawks more.

Dev waited for Lex to say anything else, but he didn't. So he just turned from him and walked away, "That will be all from me Loremaster."

The Advocate, Star Colonel Arimas Malthus approached trying to unravel a fairly negative testimony. He knew he was going to fight a losing battle, but the idea was to minimize the damage if any voting was to result.

"Dr. Barret, how did the Nighthawks come across to you, personally?"

A little surprised at the question, Lex answered, "Professional. They definitely discarded the image of bloodthirsty warmongers like the Lyran media would have us think."

"Did you see, firsthand, any member here assault or otherwise harm any non-combatant?" This was where Lex would shine, and Arimas knew this.

"No. That man over there risked his life to save my daughter, a freebirth spheroid who owes her life to the 'crusader liberators'."

That response even shocked Arimas, though he liked what he heard. Lex was using the humanitarian approach of the Nighthawks to feed on the concept of the good of the crusade, something even Dev couldn't touch. "Oh, then what made you think the men on the trucks during your escape were not Lyran contractors?"

"They had automatic weapons and grafted prosthetics. They were coordinated, and fought with a grace that I have never seen before."

"So, despite your lack of combat experience, these individuals the Inquisitor would claim to be humanitarian aide workers shocked you after decades of over-the-top produced action cinema portraying martial artists and wartime combat?"

"What does this have to do with anything?" Rosendo asked.

"I am trying to explain that the Inner Sphere entertainment industry is known for creating smoothly choreographed combat scenes that have otherwise desensitized the majority of civilians to real standards of warfare."

"That… finish it quickly." Rosendo was stretching it.

"That is my point entirely. I will spend no more time on it."

Then he turned back to Lex, "At what point did the unit weaponize the virus?"

"They didn't." Again, another contraction.

"Wait… so the 32nd landed on a planet with the deadliest known virus in history, and managed to develop a cure, safeguarding the Occupation Zone and potential points in the Successor States?"

"Yes. Finding a cure was their only priority."

"Good. One final question, Dr. Barret."

"Go ahead."

"Despite the story the Inquisitor threaded together from your details, having known the clans from a negative point of view previously, what do you now think of the Clans, Jade Falcon in particular, from your experience with them?"

"Until this council, compassionate, honorable, and efficient."

"That is all I need." And Arimas sat down, hoping it would dent the prosecution.

* * *

"My Khan, I have also called a character witness in to testify," Dev told Marthe at her station.

"Why?"

"Ma'am, I aim to prove not only that the Nighthawks' involvement killed those people, but that they were capable of it in the first place. If this one incident were out of place, they would get the benefit of the doubt, even from me. But their history of known deceptive tactics generates an entirely different form of possibility. And…" he stopped for a moment, adding the magic spark, "to prove that they were operating alone without sanctioned support."

Marthe was between a rock and a hard place. A lot of these details were new to her too, but she knew that Kael had not gone off the deep end and trained a unit of assassins to run amok acting like the lowest form of Inner Sphere mercenary filth. She did, however, need to confirm to everyone that she was unaware of the particulars of these activities. By simply 'assuring' everyone present, she would not only appear weak, but like she had something to hide. If Dev Iler did in fact distance her from the unit during his questioning, he would be doing her a favor and containing this mess. She was sure he was doing that just to get her to allow the witness its testimony, as he never made hint of her non-involvement with the first one. Sneaky little bastard…

"Very well."

Star Colonel Gretchen Talasko entered the Clan Council hall wearing her full ceremonial Star Adder dress. The deep blue and black leather was a change from the jade and yellow filling the room. Her hair flowed behind her and her walk was brisk and confident.

Upon entering the enclosure she saw Julian in his seat, bruised and silent, like he had already been defeated. She never thought that man could ever be defeated, but here he was, here all of them were.

Dev approached her in the same manner as he did Lex, "State your name and rank for the assembled warriors."

"Star Colonel Gretchen Talasko, 300th Adder Sentinels, Kappa Provisional Galaxy, Clan Star Adder." Her voice was crisp.

"How did you first meet the 32nd? Or any of its members…" Dev began.

"One of its members infiltrated my unit under the guise of an armored vehicle crewman."

"He lied to you about his identity?"

"Aff."

"And what was your first impression of the unit as a whole?"

"Excuse me?" She too was trying not to run into traps.

"What was the first thing they did that caught your attention?"

"They intercepted another unit masquerading in Jade Falcon 'mechs."

"Hmm… that particular detail never made it into the official report… So can you tell me, Star Colonel, what your unit specializes in?"

Looking slightly confused, she answered, "Kappa Galaxy is fluent in Inner Sphere combat paradigms, acting as the OPFOR in training other units to combat unexpected tactics."

"Ah," he started pacing, "So you your role in your clan sees you well versed in dezgra warfare… professionally speaking."

"Professionally speaking, aff."

"So you can identify these same tactics when used against you, or anyone else, quiaff?"

"Aff."

He stopped in front of her and turned so their eyes met, "So I ask: How did the Nighthawks intercept the unit in question?"

She nearly rolled her eyes in slight frustration, "With an ambush."

Dev pulled out a data pad and read from it, "It says here, 'Star Captain Thao Prentice ordered his support units to cover the ridge so he could bottleneck the enemy and cripple it in one salvo.' Did it work?"

"What work?"

"The ambush?"

"Neg." She was trying to figure out where he was going with this, and why he was pinpointing just this information when there was so much involved in the incident…

"You mean, tactics such as these, with no introduction, no force bidding, and nothing but utter disregard for any instance of our honored way of combat did not meet his objective?"

"Neg. They survived."

"So, after a member lied to you about his identity and had the rest of his unit ambush this team with," he was reading again, "numerous missile salvos and group firings, they had to rely on the Star Adder air forces to intercede and push their victory?"

"Aff. But after seeing the skill of their adversary--"

"You will answer only what I ask, Star Colonel."

A bitter look shot across her face, but she complied.

"As for competence, how many of the unit survived the final confrontation?"

"Eight."

"Ahh, and out of those eight, how many had functioning 'mechs?"

"Three."

"So, out of their entire deployed trinary, only three 'mechs were still moving after their combined force, plus the ordinance of thirty Adder bombers took down their targets?"

"Aff."

"Would you call this competence?"

"Excuse me?"

"Maybe I am not communicating properly," Dev was getting cynical now, "After taking the weight of Zellbrigen, dueling, and bidding off their shoulders, and adding the firepower of an entire trinary of aerospace assets, they still ended in nearly a draw? How bad must a unit be to fight like bandit dogs and still--"

"That will be enough, Inquisitor." Rosendo stood up to make sure his voice was heard, though he knew his mic would transmit it throughout the hall.

Thao Prentice suddenly appeared in the doorway, still cuffed and escorted by armed officers. He was instantly greeted with hostility.

A warrior stood up in the audience and spoke out, despite the requirement for getting permission from the Loremaster, "Has your unit ever succeeded in a mission?"

A small uproar made some unmistakable white noise while Rosendo Hazen replied, "The tract record of the unit is not under trial here--"

Another stood up, "Where did you learn to fight?"

More voices rose up. "Have you ever infiltrated our units?"

"Do you keep track of how many people you have killed?"

"Does the Khan even know what you are doing out there?"

That was it. Khan Pryde stood up intending to quell this chamber and stop them from invoking absurd charges against them. "That will be enough! Your conduct should not be of question here in our sacred hall. Do not muddle like bandit waste."

Thao sat down while he received the hated stares of a lot more bloodnamed warriors at once than he thought he'd ever see through his career, nonetheless in the same room. Then he saw Dev Iler, forgetting just how large the man was and feeling a sudden hate build within. He had the world crash on his head as some pieces of this puzzle he didn't even know exist suddenly fit together. Dev made eye contact with him as well, and just slightly smiled.

Everyone got quiet except for one man, who stood and rallied them, "I call for a vote!"

Many instantly agreed, with some applauding and others audibly approving. "If Star Colonel Kael Pershaw has indeed been running amok with our warriors and staining our history with dezgra warriors no better than Amaris's army, I say we purge him and his dezgra unit from our ranks!"

Now Kael Pershaw was concerned. He knew how to nullify most of these arguments given the opportunity to speak, but the Advocate didn't even get a chance to cross-examine Gretchen. Dev's tactic worked: anger and impulse. He used the secretive nature of his unit against him without an opportunity to explain themselves.

Marthe's eyes suddenly went wide reading her console in front of her. She typed something in, waited a moment, then got up and abruptly left the council hall altogether.

"Bad timing?" Thao asked Kael as he rounded the corner and found his empty seat between his commander and his most trusted officer. Bree's face sparked with relief that seemed to have built up an obscene amount of tension within her when she finally made eye contact with Thao. It was short lived however, as she quickly reset herself and nodded in acceptance of his presence.

Kael did not reply however, as he was busy to Rosendo Hazen to get a grip on the council. But it was too late. Numbers started pouring into the monitors ahead, with the voting for innocent or guilty mounding up. They knew already that they were screwed, and with Marthe suddenly leaving, she had no power to put a stop to it and get it back on track.

The final vote count was 194 guilty and 53 not guilty. Truth be told, Thao was shocked they even got that many who gave them the benefit of the doubt. While he had not heard the testimony, he could tell upon entering just how popular they had become.

Rosendo Hazen tried to order everyone down, but his voice just didn't carry enough. Then other voices started filling the room, speaking about why Marthe left, what she had to hide, how low they've sunken as a clan. Dev Iler could not have dreamed it any better. He planned on this part being much more orderly, but the crowd was reacting as Jade Falcon warriors tend to: with rage.

The outbursts continued, "The punishment is execution!"

"Hang them from their 'mechs!"

Arimas Malthus further reminded them that they had, under clan law, the opportunity for a proper rebuttal, but no one listened. It seemed that this fire could not be extinguished.

Until Kael Pershaw stood, slowly and carefully. It actually shut most everyone up. His sudden movement told them he was alive, and reminded them not only how old he was, but of the legends they heard and the demeanor he possessed.

His words ate through the hall, soft spoken they were, everyone heard them. "I formally request a trial of refusal. My men are honorable, and they _will_ get a chance to prove themselves."

"The trial should be today! I bid my unit to undo this travesty."

"Wait. I can set up a database for you to keep it together."

"The trial--" Rosendo Hazen started when Marthe re-entered the hall.

Her presence again silenced them, this time entirely to where her footsteps could be heard around. Many of the warriors were anxious to hear what she had to say, to see if she would again stick up for Kael or execute the will of the clan. Part of this fell on her shoulders as well.

She sat down, accessed another screen and studied it intently. There was a slight hint of concern with the way she walked, though her face was as emotionless as ever. Then the screen changed and she visibly dropped her shoulders and looked angry. Just slightly, but her face contorted enough to give that image off.

Then she spoke, "There will be no trial… now. Bloodnamed warriors of his hall, you are to leave now and report to your section commanders for further orders."

"What?!"

"You have got to be kidding me!"

The dissent almost instantly started up again, but Marthe's voice, transmitted through the PA system was enough to get them quiet. She stood as she spoke, "My orders are not negotiable. If you wish to head your units in the upcoming mess, you had better obey now, or I will gladly commission you to guard duty at every solahma outpost we have!"

Kael knew something was going on. He had never seen her like this before. He knew this had nothing to do with his sentencing, and now, with the apparent shit hitting the fan, his unit was inactive until it won its trial or refusal.

Her comment and the fervor with which she spoke it shocked the assembly. Just then one of her aide staff charged through the door. "Ma'am!" he started. "They have taken the Emerald Talon!"

Eyes across the hall were now wide with surprise. Something indeed was going on, and this was apparently not a drill.

Marthe thought for a moment, then repeated her order.

The Nighthawks remained still as everyone started to leave, Gretchen included. But, as they were moving out the door a large holoprojection filled the hall and spoke to Marthe directly.

_"Greetings Khan Pryde. I hope I am not interrupting. This is Khan Nicole Hoskins of Clan Steel Viper. I hereby challenge you to a trial of possession: for your clan's holdings on Strana Mechty."_

Most of the remaining warriors turned and looked at Marthe, who was standing to receive the transmission. Strana Mechty was shared between all the clans, as a sign of their common heritage and capability of co-existing despite their individual stances. What Nicole Hoskins was asking for was serious, and infuriating to most.

"I will see you in battle. One on one. My staff will send you the location coordinates." Her face was cold as ice.

_"Very well. We will meet shortly. To the victor goes the glory."_

Marthe shot a look to the warriors to get to their section commanders and prepare for war. She was most definitely _not_ messing around.

They emptied out and she approached the Nighthawks. "Kael, I apologize for the proceedings."

"I would too," He replied, telling her full well how he felt about everything.

"I just lost contact with near 60 of our holdings here in the homeworlds. Intel says they are currently defending against a wave of Steel Viper invaders, coordinated over several planets at the same time."

"Well," he started, "They picked a great time. Most of our commanders are here, on Strana Mechty instead of with their men on those outposts."

"Exactly."

Thao just sat, trying to comprehend the scope of everything and how they could fit into it. His biggest fear now wasn't death, but being left out.

"Something to look into later however. I have a mission for you," Marthe stated.

"But I am under the impression that my unit is inactive until it wins its trial of refusal."

"This _is_ your trial of refusal. You are to retake the Emerald Talon."

Thao almost choked on his own saliva at that one, "Excuse me? Khan Pryde, we do not have the resources at hand for a naval opera--"

"That is the point. With the odds against you, if you survive this, you will have earned your place in the clan in the eyes of its warriors."

Kael thought about it for a moment, then replied, "Yes, my Khan. We will start preparations immediately."

"You do that."

"Ma'am, I may require some additional supplies for my unit."

"Give my staff a requirements listing. I will accommodate you as I see fit."

"Understood."

"Now, I have a trial of my own to win." She started to walk away when she partially turned for a final word, "And Kael?"

"Yes?"

"You are the only people I trust to do this right. I want my ship back."

He just nodded as she turned to leave.

Thao approached Kael and gave him the picture he got from Shale. "Star Colonel, I have a development."

"Yes?"

"This is my former unit, the one you pulled me from back in 3067. Several members have been murdered or hospitalized."

"Oh," was all Kael said when he saw the picture, and the commander showcased within it.

"Aff. Star Colonel Dev Iler. He was my former CO."

"Interesting."

"Sir, I can have--"

Kael raised his hand to silence him. "I will take care of that. I need you to get the unit together and plan this warship infiltration."

Thao hesitated, really wanting to get on with the grand scheme of things. But he knew that if this was considered their Trial of Refusal, it had better be immaculate. So he complied.

* * *

Upon leaving the hall, Kael was approached by Gretchen Talasko, who was waiting for him near the door. She pulled him aside to speak with him privately.

"Yes, Star Colonel? Please make it quick, I have a lot to do."

"I received approval from Galaxy Commander Jenica Turgidson to temporarily re-assign me to your unit if need be."

"What are you talking about?" he asked.

"I have a vow of indebtedness to fulfill to Julian Buhallin for saving my life on Huntress."

"That is nice, but the details of our mission are above any security clearance I would approve--"

"With all due respect, I know more about your unit than you would like to admit. If there is any way I can help, and now looks like the only time I may be able to, please give me the opportunity."

Kael stopped and thought. "Are you sure? We are going on a suicide mission."

She just half-smiled and handed him the data stick containing her permission for temporary reassignment, "Sounds like fun."

"You will have to take orders from a Star Captain however…"

"Knowing Star Captain Thao Prentice, I would consider it a learning experience."

Then he turned and started walking away from her, "Very well. Follow them to their briefing room and talk to Thao about securing a 'mech."

"Aff." _This is going to be one hell of a ride,_ she thought to herself. But after surviving her last encounter with these guys, she expected nothing less.


	5. Chapter Four: Death Shell

**CHAPTER FOUR: DEATH SHELL**

Bree sat in the empty briefing room going over her mission points on the data pad Kael left her. She looked like the competent Star Commander, absorbing every bit if information to help her make educated calls in the field.

But in truth, she couldn't concentrate. The world she knew crumbled so quickly that she felt caught up in a forever shifting tidal wave of confusion.

Thao knocked on the door behind her, interrupting the stagnant silence and almost making her jump. "Julian said you needed to talk to me…"

"Ju--" What was he talking about? Julian hadn't spoken to her since the council let out. And the realization of his intuition being keen enough to read her mind like an open book from a distance just hit her from the side. It seems he knew more about her than she thought, about everyone, perhaps. And him taking it upon himself to force her into this situation… she just laughed at the implications, almost making her seem nervous, but quite the contrary.

"What is it?" Thao asked as he entered the room.

She just sat there, quiet, not really knowing what to say.

"You are worried?"

"Aff. It is just… you are the only person crazy enough to think he can take a warship with twenty people."

"Would you rather me not? I should just sit here and let the clan crucify us?"

She exhaled to jettison the excess thoughts fogging her mind. "No, that is not what I meant."

"Look, I have to do this. For the men that are coming with me, I need to be confident. I need to be 100. I have my own crap to sift through right now. The last 48 hours have been hell for me."

She just interrupted him, not wanting him to think she was being selfish, "I know. I just… You deserve better than to die on some shell in the middle of space. Much better."

He moved in close, "This is not about me, is it?"

She looked away, knowing how a warrior is supposed to be disciplined at all times, rejecting notions of emotion when needed.

"Say it."

She then looked him in the eyes, "I want you back. I want you to do your mission and return, get this over with. There is so much…"

"Yeah." He inhaled deep trying to think of the right words, "'We' have more time, do we not? Time to figure out what 'we' is?" He nodded in understanding.

"This is wrong of me. It is selfish. A warrior should not care about anything contrary to the mission."

"You know, where have the rules gotten us so far? As far as I see, the very system we tried to uphold wants us dead. Heh, where does that leave us? What does that leave us? Warriors? Bandits?"

He looked her in the eyes, "For you." Then he grabbed her hand, gently. "I will come back for you. You deserve better than for me to die on that ship, disgracing the unit and making you unworthy of the clan. You are better than that."

"Thao--"

He held a finger to her mouth to stop her, "This is our war, for us. We have sacrificed too much to be slaughtered like unwanted cattle. You will do the clan proud, everyone will. I need to make sure we survive to get the chance."

She understood his point and looked away.

"And then, after that, 'we' get that chance. The two of us. I am tired of living inside this box of unspoken rules. I will come back for you, alright?"

And at that she smiled.

* * *

A wall of humidity hit her face as hard as her boots hit the ground. It was dense, and it made the world heavy.

Marthe Pryde jumped from her transport to her designated insertion point. Dressed in combat pants and a tank top, she had her hair ponytailed, bound at the top, the middle, and the bottom to prevent it from splaying out if things got as messy as she thought they would. Her initial gear included several canteens of water and a laminated map of the area. Nothing else. No combat knife, no GPS receiver.

Before leaving the clan hall she had Kael Pershaw hand her aide staff the plans of one of his training exercises he had his units do in their downtime. This one was similar to a cadet's trial of position, but altered in certain key spots.

It would have been easy to simply have a 'mech duel with the Steel Viper saKhan, but with the weight of all the incoming data and briefings due to the sudden compromise of so many enclaves throwing her about, she needed to clear her head so she was on equal footing with one of the leaders of a clan whose momentum was swiftly taking flight. Nicole's confidence must be tremendous at this point, and a battle of wits, which Marthe particularly specializes in, levels the playing field.

The only problem she had with it was the location. McKenna, the equator continent on Strana Mechty was populated with dense rain forests and received much of the ocean jet streams, creating a lot of rain. It was lush with foliage, almost too thick for her tastes in a combat setting. Sweat instantly started to drip from her chin, running all the way from the top of her head. Her boots made their way into the earth slightly, using her body weight to sink into the mud below. A recent rain left the place even more humid than normal.

She took off from her spot in the field and headed for the tree line. Being caught in the open was not in her agenda, especially when the Viper saKhan's drop location was undisclosed to her. A member of her staff accompanied Nicole Hoskins' crew while a Viper observer stayed with hers, to verify there is no foul play.

Running helped as it forced air over her head to radiate a body that was still adjusting to the sudden climate change. The grass was up to her knees in some spots, making movement quite noisy, but the shade offered from the tree canopy suppressed the undergrowth ahead.

After reaching the shade, she dropped to one knee and pulled out her map. She instantly found her location and mentally plotted several paths to her destination, where supplies and another map awaited. After that, she was told, she could make her way to her favorite toy of all, provided the trial lasts that long.

The map showed the layout of the ground as well, including elevation and waterways. It was not long before she got a total feel for what was ahead, and that is when she heard something to her left.

Her face instantly snapped to attention to meet a possible threat head on, but she saw nothing. _Am I paranoid,_ she asked herself? And she assured that dissenting voice that she wasn't. Getting ambushed now by the other khan would be tragic, but Kael does not set up elaborations like these to be ended so quickly. Nicole's drop point should be far enough to not be of an immediate concern, or so logic would imply.

But he is a sadistic beast when he wants to be. She left nothing to chance.

Getting up, she moved through the trees to her first destination, flowing like a wind finally set free from the confinement of an airlock around obstacles at will.

* * *

About half of her water was gone already, but the concern of losing that much of the valued resource was alleviated with the roar of a waterfall ahead. The Jade Falcon khan made her way to an elevated position in the forest for a better view of her surroundings, with just enough cover to keep her from long range visual exposure. She needed to see how vast the river was and if crossing it would be difficult to negotiate.

Rock emerged from the ground in levels, giving her the ability to climb onto several successive ledges to reach the top. In the distance to her right, she saw the ground gradually rise to meet her desired elevation, but she was not interested in travelling around to make a climb easier. Besides, she enjoyed the workout.

Before reaching the top, she already saw the expanse of the river below, with mostly muddy banks, some covered in rocks. The falls themselves were still blocked from view by the formation she was climbing, but she took a moment to absorb the scenery before moving on.

It was beautiful. In her younger years she made a habit of travelling around on the worlds she was stationed, mostly to clear her head and find that calm that only solitude can provide. But here, on Strana Mechty, she was so busy with administration and other khanly duties that she never visited this continent.

Slivers of light shot down through the canopy to the ground, creating a visual feast of crystal-like properties. She did not see any animals below, and the shimmering of the water as it flowed from the falls' bottom was mesmerizing in its own right.

She climbed the last tier and found that the ground did extend off, slowly declining into the forest again. It was more of a cliff than a peak, with the other side being the overhang to the falls itself. But, standing in front of the cliff edge, was saKhan Nicole Hoskins, who seemed to be enjoying the scenery herself. Without turning, Nicole spoke up, "Khan Pryde, I see why you chose to do this here. It is definitely worth seeing before you die."

"Better than a cold room."

Nicole turned, "I agree. This is not exactly what I had envisioned when challenging you. You Falcons seem to have more layers than I thought."

"You will learn that quick enough when your invasion collapses."

Nicole smiled a hollow display of amusement, "Yes, and overconfident as well."

Marthe approached, slowly, "Challenging me, here, for the enclave that Nicholas Kerensky himself provided us, to every one of the clans, is wrong. Your way of going about this entire thing is wrong. You cannot win if your intentions are not pure."

"Philosophy? Leave that to the Cloud Cobras. I am a warrior, and the idea of wrong is subjective. Like I feel it was wrong to pit a freebirth against another clan's khan. That is below the rest of the clans, anyway."

Marthe saw where this was going, and could definitely use it to throw her adversary off guard. "If your khan and his command star could not defeat a single freeborn in combat, I say your warrior training is wrong."

A hint of anger splashed across Nicole's eyes, but it was brief, and you had to be looking for it to see it. "Yes, well loosing over half of clan space should rectify that, quiaff?"

Marthe was getting close now, not getting verbally baited into losing herself. "Oh, and planning a massive strike while all our homeworld bloodnamed warriors are convening is a slightly cowardly thing to do. Now all your units will suffer defeat from commander-less warriors. I do not envy you."

A look of surprise took the Viper khan's face, "Bloodnamed warriors convening…?"

Marthe seized the opportunity to lunge with the first strike. Her fist hit the neck of Nicole as she thrust and sidestepped for a follow up blow to her knee. Nicole cringed at having the nerves in her neck explode in pain, but managed to gather herself enough to grab onto Marthe as she fell after having her left leg kicked out from under her.

She pulled the Falcon khan to the ground and rolled out of the way, getting up and lowering her base of gravity to start her own offensive. Marthe kip-upped and instantly blocked the hammer fist brought on by the other combatant, only to suffer a punch to the stomach and a follow up to her temple.

But the speed at which her head was forcing her body to fall allowed her to spin into a sweep that Nicole surprisingly jumped over. The completion of her spin put her head in a spot that saw it smashed into Nicole's knee as she kicked Marthe in the face and forced her body down again. This time, the Viper khan landed on her and pinned her arms down with her knees while applying a choke hold that was extremely effective.

Marthe's lungs instantly screamed for air as she felt Nicole's fingers burying themselves into her throat, though she remained calm as she tried to roll her arms loose in defense. But they weren't moving. As she became lightheaded she realized that the pin she was in could stop the arms from rolling, but not retracting. The sound of the world started to mute out and she started to become numb. It is a frightening experience being choked out, but the malice in Nicole's eyes, staring her down while squeezing the life out of her fueled that drive to survive from within outward with a burst of energy. _Not this day,_ she told herself.

While it killed her elbows, she managed, before unconsciousness would lose her status as the Jade Falcon khan and all her clan's holdings on Strana Mechty, to spring her arms loose and cup both of her hands to simultaneously strike both sides of her enemy's head. They impacted the ears, cupping air in them and blowing that force into the ear canals, shocking the inner ear and throwing both Nicole's hearing and equilibrium to the floor for the moment. Then she used her thumbs to pin-point strike Nicole's face, driving them under her ears, just behind her jawbone to incite both more pain and drive her off entirely.

The sudden shock worked, as the mix of pain and disorientation throwing Nicole aside for the moment allowed Marthe to catch her breath. And when her brain registered it was receiving adequate oxygen, she approached Nicole and went for the finishing blow. Raising her leg high, she went to roundhouse Nicole in her head, who, while still disoriented, read it quickly enough to duck under and grab it, punching the inside of Marthe's support leg and shooting pain through it back up to her stomach. It was impossible to tell if the sudden shock of being faked into a vulnerable position by a most guileful opponent or the pain resulting from the hit itself rendered her unable to recover quickly enough, but as things were going, she may not have the time later to think about it.

While getting her other foot down to the ground and reeling over from the well-placed inner-thigh hit, Nicole swung and nailed Marthe in the side of the head again, sending her stumbling off. Finally Marthe was able to recover. While still low to the ground, she saw that the Viper khan landed a lucky blow, as her body still wavered slightly from the previous ear shock and was still having trouble focusing. Sometimes a hit takes a moment to really affect someone.

Sweat stung her eyes and the breeze felt so good as she blocked out her own dizziness and resolved to take advantage of the Viper khan's state.

They locked up in a grappling stance and Nicole successfully head-butt her, crushing her nose. And though the blow instantly watered Marthe's eyes, she was able to grab Nicole's right hand a moment after. Instinct took over and she pulled Nicole's arm in and thrust her own free forearm through the elbow joint, quickly and effectively. She heard an audible 'snap' and released it, using the shock of the pain in her opponent to set her up for an eye jab.

Both of her fingers hit their target, hard. A scream erupted from the Viper khan and the hand that was tending the broken elbow suddenly flew to her face in response. No time was wasted as a spinning jump side kick sent her all the way back to the cliff edge. Nicole slid on the loose dirt near the rock edge, landing on her back and getting up as quick as she could given her disoriented state.

Sensing the shift in momentum, Marthe decided to end this quick. She approached swiftly, pacing her last blow to be exact, and executed it seamlessly. She lifted her non-stinging leg and thrust her foot out, moving with enough force to move an opponent through a wall, intending to launch Nicole over the edge. But instead of catching the Viper khan in the chest, Nicole, who again seemed to recover enough to formulate a response, sidestepped at the last moment and chopped a near passing Marthe in the back of the neck before the shifting of her weight sent her to the ground behind.

The weight of Marthe's body moving much farther than anticipated now that the buffer of a target disappeared nearly sent her mind into panic mode. While she did keep her calm, she was barely able to retract her foot enough to catch the edge. But the strike to her brainstem did its job, and she wasn't able to respond quickly enough and shift her weight back again in time.

Her foot slipped on the loose dirt near the edge and she went over.

Everything blotted out, the sound of the falls, the depth of the sky. Her arm lashed out and grabbed the edge of the cliff face, giving her that last thread of opportunity to survive this. Dangling well over a hundred meters over the pit of the falls, she found herself swinging left to right from the inertia of the fall.

She feared shifting her weight up to get her other hand would cause her to slip, as another few millimeters squeezed their way from under her anchored hand, that much closer to failure. So she instead used her swinging momentum to catch a foothold to her left. She could hear only her breathing and every minuscule scrape of skin from her hand sliding ominously over the edge of the cliff top. The swing missed, and another millimeter gave, now leaving just half her fingers over the edge.

There was just one more shot at this. She had to swing hard, higher, farther… And on the apex of the swing, her hand gave way.

Gravity embraced her, pulling her down so abruptly that she barely knew what happened. The world accelerated quickly, with the falls, the air rushing past her from below, and depth of the world now stretching to the heavens. The sight of the edge, the sky, and control over her world receded quickly, tearing away out of reach, until she was forced to submit to nature at whatever cost it asked of her.

* * *

"Okay, this is the set up. The Emerald Talon has security points at every docking port, and those will either be disabled from the inside or surely have an enemy presence. But we do have access ports. If you look at the ship from underneath, you see three of them, and only one gets us where we need to go." Thao was addressing his team with a holo-vid projector presentation. He had his men assembled before him in the small ship that was already heading toward their target.

The vessel they were on was a transport ship, with a configured Steel Viper IFF signature. Thao was hoping, as the mission rode on his assumption, that the distant sight of other Viper transports heading to the warship meant that only the strike team and a few select extra personnel would be on board. They would mostly be in the bridge, controlling it while keeping the rest of it secured with minimal numbers. If a Falcon crewman was still in front of the sensors readout, he wouldn't care, much less inform the Viper commander that one of the reinforcement ships was coming from a different direction than the others.

"Wait… unguarded access ports? Can I ask why there are so many vulnerable points on a Nightlord and what is the catch?" Mechwarrior Kim was already skeptical. But who couldn't be when tasked to take a warship with only twenty people?

Gregors spoke up after a nod from Thao. "These ports were designed to shuttle tools and equipment in and out for repair crews on the hull. Instead of having all their supplies out at once, the ports were made as small air locks that can be used to lighten their burden.

"As to why they are vulnerable: they are not. While a guard is not posted at each of them, they are regularly inspected by on-board patrols and require a level four clearance security code."

"Wow. Level four?"

"Aff." Thao took over again. "When you have several small doors to a warship out of the main view of the crew, you need to make sure they are taken seriously. Luckily, we are not taking someone else's warship. We are taking ours. Khan Pryde's staff supplied us with everything. Schematics, wiring diagrams, security codes, patrol routes, access corridors, and every repair and structural modification done to this thing. The advantage we have over the Vipers in there is that we have the keys to the entire ship. And we use that for placement purposes."

The Nightlord ship in the vid-projection then turned hollow, showing several internal key points, illuminated paths, and points of interest. "The point of this mission is not to overtake the Steel Viper force, but take control of the bridge, isolate the enemy into pocket corridors, and allow the existing security forces to overwhelm them. For whatever reason they actually lost the ship, I am willing to bet they would claw their way to the end of the galaxy for a shot at retaking it. We go in three teams. The mission also moves in three phases: placement, siege, and fortification. Myself, Berks, Hammer, and Nathanial will move into place here, in ductwork over the starboard side of the bridge. Star Captain Gregors, Samme, Rachael, and Danielle will move into place here, in the ducts over the port side. This is the command and control center of the ship and our top priority. There is no contingency plan if we cannot take the bridge. I do not need to tell you what that means.

"The second team will consist of Mechwarriors Kim, Carlis, and elementals Bryan and Xune. You are to move into position here and gain control of the routers into the bridge. Kim, I know you area genius as far as warriors go when it comes to electrical, so you are the glue that holds this thing together."

"Sir." She nodded.

"Jackal, Weston, Cy, and Caine: You are to hit the engine control room. Hack into the computer there and wait for my order to proceed.

"Julian, you get the holding tanks. You know what to do."

Julian looked up at Thao and nodded, already having a brief prior to this.

"Good. The first phase is to get into place, hack the engine control computer and tap into the bridge routers.

"The second phase is the tricky one. Given the word, I want the comm. and power cut to the bridge. The system will automatically reroute power from its back-up cells, but you need to override those as well. Each system in the bridge has its own auxiliary power supply, so I only need the auxiliary lights, engine, and comm. controls disabled. I know the delay will be a few moments, but you have less than ten seconds to get all those back-up systems offline. Carlis, Bryan, and Xune: You cover Kim for the set up, but get on the other systems she cannot reach when the party kicks off. Hunker down, and when I give the word, light us back up. Then immediately head to the armory via these corridors here. This is the most direct route that lacks security doors. With most of the Vipers hopefully in these surroundings halls, you should be able to avoid them entirely. The armory itself automatically seals in the event the bridge is compromised. So if the Vipers found a way to open it after their siege, it will seal again when we cut the power. You need to access the master menu and reset the entry code so only our team knows what it is. Then after that, rendezvous with the team in engineering.

"When the power is cut to the bridge, the forward decks will automatically seal in the automated alarm response. We could stop this, but I would rather not. With the way it sections off, it will contain most of the Viper pockets, limiting the number of enemy combatants we will be confronting.

"Engineering team: You need to get to this point and hack into the engine controls. When we give the go, you increase throttle output 70."

A silence lingered in the room before Jackal spoke up. "Sir? That is quite a bit. With the bridge off-line--"

"The auxiliary power to the steering control will be active, so the crew can keep her in orbit fine. We need the gravity. We know it is coming, but they will not. We can secure the bridge ten times faster if we have gravity, so we hit it fast and hard."

"Understood." Jackal saw the wisdom in the plan.

"After that, you are to secure the engine bay at all costs. They will most likely already have a good security presence, so disengage the computer, dig in, and wait for the cavalry. Gregors has some code you can imprint on the security network so the Vipers cannot re-hack the system and restore controls.

"With the gravity, their numbers will initially have an undisputed advantage, so do what you have to do to stay alive. Understood?"

While the Jade Falcon clan's doctrine never had retreat-and-hide in their annals, the fact that this team would be needed later made the order's intention obvious. The main objective here was to both get the Emerald Talon under Falcon control again, and make sure it would be functional enough to matter in the first place.

Thao paused for a second, then started again, slowly, "And there is one more major obstacle here."

Samme caught on before everyone else did, "Elementals."

"Aff. No one in this galaxy, save the unfortunate disgrace of the Black Talon that still stings to this day, takes a warship without armored infantry. You can expect a heavy Steel Viper elemental presence. While we had at least 200 armored infantry on the Emerald Talon, they have obviously failed. But with the ship still intact, we can assume most of them surrendered, as a fight to the death with so many would have most certainly crippled or destroyed the ship. So, we have a problem of adequate firepower."

"I will say," Jackal added. "Forget the age old question: 'How do you kill an elemental on foot?', and replace it with, 'How do you kill an elemental on foot inside a pressurized spacecraft?'"

"Well," Thao began, while everyone waited in suspense, "Kael has authorized us using the trishes."

More than one person shook his head at that in disapproval, thought they all knew there was nothing to be done about it.

The trish was a prototype miniature grenade launcher with a three round capacity designed to fire sticky, shaped charges of pentaglycerine explosive and a dozen encapsulate chemical distributors. 'Tri' for round capacity and 'sh' for shaped. They were specially designed by a team of technicians that Kael formed to find a way to kill an elemental quickly, without area effect weapons. The weapons themselves were not that hard to make as the technology and components were easily accessable, but the rounds proved to be a challenge.

Each round had a receiver looped around the back end, embedded in the rear of the head with several 'soft' points for the signal to pass. A conventional casing was built in to the back, slightly smaller than the head, so that the heated gas pressure from the firing would not impact the receiver coil as much.

When fired, it would attach to whatever it hit. A shaped charge inside would instantly arm at the impact, and the two display lights on the end would turn green if it was ready. The gunman would confirm the round hit its intended target and have the option of detonating it. Two buttons near the grip controlled the 'detonate' and 'disarm' triggers, giving the user the option to go ahead with the charge or ditch it if it hit something other than the target.

The detonation was enough to punch through the armor of an elemental because of the amount of pentaglycerine used and the focused area receiving all the force. While the suit would instantly seal the hole and administer first aid, the mortality rate of the intended target would be in question, unless the charge went through the head or chest. So the capsules would disintegrate through the heat induced by the detonation, but protect the substance inside enough that it would saturate the wound of the target. It was a paralytic compound that would enter the bloodstream and effect most tissue it contacted. Paralyzing random tissue is one thing, but once it hits the lungs, the target suffocates within moments. Even the suit can pump oxygen into the pilot, but jumpstarting the heart, brain, and lungs at the same time would still not purge the chemical. They are done for.

The thought of using explosives in a spacecraft still sat poorly with some individuals, but with the installed fail safes, and the required marksmanship Kael's courses induced, these would be the best weapons to do the trick. Again, all contemporary technology, but designed around a new concept.

"Any questions?"

Kim raised her hand, "What do we do when the ship is locked down?"

"Star Colonel Pershaw will have the Iron Raptor in deep orbit. It should be behind the moon, staying hidden from the visual sensors of the Emerald Talon. The moment we take the bridge, they will slingshot around the moon and make way for planet fall. We arm up and rendezvous with them."

"Oh. On Marshall? What is down there?"

"Two Falcon enclaves that we lost contact with. But he did not tell me the specifics. That is not our concern. We focus on the Emerald Talon. Anything else?"

A long silence sustained itself.

"Good. Your gear assignments are on your data pads. Insertion is in two hours. Dismissed."

They maneuvered out of the room with the support ropes when Weston asked Julian what else he was going to be doing.

Julian cracked a smile and replied, "I get VIP duty."

* * *

_"There is no art which is not war. No war which is not art."_

Marthe Pryde remembered saying that some years ago to Rosendo Hazen before he took the reigns of the Coventry campaign. She was not known to inspire people through vocal quips of philosophical metaphor, but none can argue that the campaign was not artful.

Throughout man's history, nothing created more tension than the lengthy tribulations of one's life. Tests of survival, facing the unknown, and the feeling of regret one feared having if they had failed a test they should have passed, and survived to suffer the personal shame and its consequences.

The clans, however, have found a way to inverse that. Through training, mental conditioning, and a lifetime of such trials providing much desired rewards, clan warriors relished the anxiety of a life-threatening challenge. But, instead of just his own life being at stake, the fate of worlds or civilizations was occasionally in sight.

For Marthe Pryde, focusing on the freedom that only nature afforded when fighting for survival eased that tension. This was not a bureaucratic debate or a propaganda campaign, but a straight-up battle of who wants it more. Victory, glory, honor. They were all words, but the feeling of succumbing to nature, where the most dedicated pushed themselves beyond their limits and the limits of their foe to excel their own life, cause, or crusade; that was a rush. That was what pushed the blood through her veins, all the way up to the clearing she was facing now.

Still wet from the swim to shore, Marthe had lost her hair bands and her canteens in the river an hour ago. Though it was still insanely humid, the water evaporating from the surface of her exposed skin as she ran through the forest was blissful. It cooled a soul that was heated with a passion for war. Not the macabre, killing of innocent life aspect of it, but the artful challenge of competition.

The joy of exerting one's will over their enemy is very much like an artist's joy of exerting his will over the world around him, externalizing his need for control and release. Maybe she was on to something with that quote, or maybe it was just coincidental she found a new dimension to it today, on Strana Mechty, in a battle to preserve her clan. That thought would be preserved for her to debate in the months to come. Right now she was still busy exerting that will.

Surviving her drop, Marthe was determined to erase the temporary victory awarded the Steel Viper saKhan after faking her out at the last moment of their battle. The fact that she was fooled into thinking Nicole had already submitted to failure nearly enraged her. That mistake forced her to throw herself over the edge of a deadly cliff, and for that embarrassment, she would not forgive herself until she claimed final victory here. Now it was personal.

The clearing ahead contained her drop-box. Time was taken to ensure she wasn't followed and there was no ambush awaiting her when she exposed herself to the surrounding trees when in the clearing proper. But it was small, and it did not take long for her to grow impatient and push forward to the box to receive its gifts in kind.

The security code she was given worked and the electronic door on the top hissed and popped open, allowing her to swing it away and expose the racks inside.

First, she grabbed the data pad containing a GPS tracked layout of the terrain that allowed her to plot a direct path to her _Summoner_. Then she grabbed the canteen of fresh water behind it.

Working the map to zoom in on her position, she made two mental paths to her 'mech, though opted for the faster, more exposed one. The thought of the air-conditioned cockpit and power of an extended range PPC at her fingertips sent a cold shiver up her spine, a welcoming one.

And, behind the data pad, was a holster. She pulled it out to find an SM690. _That thoughtful savashri,_ she thought of Kael as she checked it for ammunition.

While Elizabeth Hazen was known for wielding the battered katana delivered to her by the fabled Turkina, the katana she gave to Aaron DeChavallier as a gift some years before his death, there was a gift he graced her with in return. Before the battle he accepted her katana as a token of comradeship through the civil war and a lasting friendship far before. After he died, his will bequeathed her his sidearm. A slightly older model than the standard issue of the time, the SM690 was an ever-reliable .45 caliber semi-automatic that some 'old-school' commandos still endorsed during the pentagon worlds' civil war. His was customized with his initials engraved in ivory handgrips and the inscription _"__With Grace I Take Thee, Life For Life_" across the slide.

That was back before the creation of the clans, and technology has relegated this model to museums and antique collections. As khan, Marthe had access to the relics of her clan, including the five feathers and leather band that the story claims were given to Elizabeth before avenging her friend's death. And in the collection, was the pistol.

Whether this was the actual one or a replica mattered not. It still worked. And while Nicole Hoskins more than likely received a contemporary model firearm whose potential overshadowed this, the historical reminder of her Falcon heritage was ignited in this simple gesture. She was the latest in a prestigious line of Falcon khans, and she vowed not to be the last.

_Thank you, Kael,_ she thought as she made her way through the brush once again.

* * *

The startup was smooth, with the humming of the fusion reactor resonating through the ferro-fibrous armor of her beloved omnimech. The machine erected itself and stood tall in the matching green forest.

Marthe popped her neck to the side and gently pushed the throttle lever forward, forcing her _Summoner_ to lift its left leg and start walking. It took a moment to get used to walking in the mud like she was, having to adjust the weight shifting through her neurohelmet a bit at first. But like any proficient pilot, it took mere moments to get it right, and soon enough the 'mech moved effortlessly through a path wide enough to the base of a large hill ahead.

Waiting for that rush that accompanies 70 tons suddenly turning weightless in a lifting world, she tapped her feet on the foot pedals to ignite her _Summoner's_ jump jets and rocketed to the top of the hill. On the perch, she could oversee the valley below, with the foot of the river she had brought with her into the cockpit, collecting in the base of her seat from her still-wet clothes. The canopy was still dense, with random holes exposing the ground beneath in illuminated pockets.

Like a perched falcon she stood, overlooking her new domain. And like the eyes of her clan's totem, her viewport zoomed in to locate the distant image of Nicole Hoskins' _Timber Wolf_ as it navigated through a rough patch toward a small series of clearings near the riverbed ahead.

The Viper khan saw her, but was out of range to fire. Marthe zoomed in even further to see the cockpit. The khans, now zeroed in on each other, exchanged looks. Where Nicole's showed a battle plan forming, Marthe's showed a corner of her mouth lift in a smile that would send shivers down any less-experienced warrior.

Then she jumped, landing hard in the mud below, and thrust her 'mech toward the other khan. The _Summoner_ was graceful as well, responding to her veteran touch like a finely tuned instrument. Bobbing and weaving, she made her way to the first of the clearings leading to her side of the river-bed.

Telemetry picked the _Timber Wolf_ up and poured data onto her target screen. Distance, weapons loadout, and designated pilot. The distance meter quickly reduced itself to accommodate her sprint toward the other 'mech, letting her heat sinks manage the heat of her run and figuratively stretch the muscles of her 'mech out, preparing it for combat.

Then the reticle turned red, signifying the maximum effective range of her ERPPC. While maintaining her sprint, she waited to line her shot up through a path of trees that would just momentarily expose the two. And with the opening approaching, her finger squeezed the trigger on her right control stick to send a particle bolt slithering past searing leaves and slamming into her intended target. First blood was hers this time.

But the victory was short-lived as the _Timber Wolf_ smashed through the tree line separating the two and unleashed duel volleys of long range missiles. Warning sirens exploded in Marthe's ears as she visually tracked the walls of light and smoke that approached at a frightening pace. She surged past a patch of trees as the majority of the missiles hit the timber in front of her. Several hit her left side as she passed, barely registering on the damage readout.

Using her self-created momentum, she jumped again, turning her torso in the direction of the passing _Timber Wolf_ and firing both her PPC and autocannon into its travel path. The PPC plowed into the ground ahead of the 'mech, while the shell slammed into the top of its left shoulder mounted missile rack. It did not penetrate, but it did rock the machine sideways, making its turn to face her even more difficult as she descended into the trees once again, temporarily erasing her from Nicole's line of sight and negating her chances of effective return fire.

The river shimmered in the corner of Marthe's eye, telling her that she was getting close now. The tree line receded from the waterway on both sides, creating the bottom of the valley and an interesting terrain to host future combat. That was her destination.

Then her side-display lit up, showing Nicole Hoskins in her 'mech maneuvering into view and opening fire once again. Large and medium lasers pummeled her 'mech from the side, hitting both her left leg and arm. She took just a moment to stabilize her 'mech's stride after the hit to the leg, and moved her left arm slightly to insure it still had a full range of motion.

Then she visually imprinted the image of the forest ahead of her and twisted her torso to the side to face the _Timber Wolf_ as she strafed laterally across its center of vision. A volley from her own long range missile rack and another PPC bolt made their way from her 'mech to its opponent, with most of the missiles impacting the front of the _Timber Wolf's_ chassis and scorching its respectable paint job. Her target screen showed some damage to the Viper's 'mech and signified it by changing its color readout from green to bright yellow on several animated panels of the mini-holo-'mech in her display.

She straightened her torso before veering left around a large tree and splashing into the river. _So far, so good,_ she thought. If she could get a good spot in the next few seconds before the return fire made its way over, she would be assured the initiative for the next few moments of the battle.

But the river was narrow here and did not bend very much at all. In the distance down-stream she saw a large blockage formed by fallen tree trunks and what could be a natural dam by one of the local wildlife. But either than that, the terrain offered little that she could use to her advantage at this point, which put her on the defensive when Nicole hit the tree line and let rip another two missile volleys and a synchronized pair of large lasers in her direction.

She was nailed in the back by it all as she aimed for a dirt-pocket that would let her turn her 'mech around at speed rather easily. The impact jolted her 'mech forward and her damage readout altered itself accordingly, telling her that another few hits like that would lose her the duel outright.

But the next wave of weapon's fire came sooner than she though, as another few laser bolts rocked her forward, reddening her readout and forcing her to turn prematurely to avoid a rear armor breach.

The _Timber Wolf_ was already just meters from its next cover point, blocking her line of sight and forcing her to load cluster rounds into her autocannon so she could pepper the area and score some random hits through the leaves to flush her opponent back out in to the open.

Her cannon started to boom, repetitively sending waves of scatter-shot into the trees ahead. It was rhythmic, but short lived as the _Summoner_, whose primary variant she still swore by, was not known for its large ammunition capacity. It was a finesse 'mech, used by agile pilots who only shot at things they were guaranteed to hit.

Then she saw a spark behind the innermost tree, probably her last cluster round frying a circuit just beyond the outer-armor layer of Nicole's 'mech. And it must've done the trick, because the _Timber Wolf_, in all its glory, appeared, torso aligned with her position, and poured an alpha strike into her own upper torso.

Seeing the wave of fire approaching, Marthe fired off another salvo from her shoulder-mounted LRM rack, trying to get the most use out of it before the incoming fire threatened to damage it.

And in a sense, both of them succeeded. Her missiles hit their mark, blanketing the right side of the _Timber Wolf_ with explosions and blowing some shrapnel into its right shoulder actuator, forcing its arm to hang helplessly from its housing right before her own missile launcher underwent enough concussive damage from the incoming fire to damage its mounting coupling. It moved just enough to the side to have the computer automatically shut its firing controls down.

She silently cursed as she just lost a third of her weapons and moved to the right, across the river to shuffle her movements and keep her travel path unpredictable.

Nicole was not fooled however, and she moved across the river as well, paralleling her movements and pinpoint hitting the _Summoner's_ PPC arm with evenly timed laser fire. The angle slowly closed the distance and Marthe ejected her LRM ammo from the back of her 'mech, not needing the now useless ordinance posing an internal threat.

Then Nicole charged, alternating fire and rapidly closing distance once again. With Marthe moving to her side, she discharged the thought of changing directions, something not wise to do at this speed in running water, and instead jump-jetted backward to maintain distance, which was her friend in this 'mech.

She slowly lined her legs up with her torso as she propelled backward, and her radar lock signaled that another missile volley was about to pummel her face, which was not good while air-borne.

Working on reflex, she shot a cluster round into the river where the LRM ammo should have landed and luckily, ignited it in time to send a wash of debris and water into the path of the Viper khan, forcing her to diverting her 'mech's torso to minimize damage, which sent her shot wide. The missiles sailed harmlessly away into the sky, instantly forgotten in the heat of the battle below.

The _Timber Wolf_ kept coming however, now much closer than Marthe would have wanted. Smoking pock-marks all over the front of the approaching 'mech told Marthe that she did damage it with that last hit, but only enough to piss it off. She started firing her PPC at the rushing 'mech, pumping round after round into the torso, just nailing it in enough areas to not amass any significant damage to a single armor plate.

Her heat levels started to rise with the constant fire, and finally Nicole managed to punch through the _Summoner's_ torso armor with large laser fire and disable half of her central heat sinks.

Suddenly the engine heat began to build and she knew this was going from bad to worse at unthinkable speeds. Now, going to head to head with a _Timber Wolf_ seemed like a cocky thing to do, and Marthe knew all too well that hind-sight was a harsh mistress.

So it was again up to instinct. She engaged her jump jets and sailed over the make-shift dam while slamming her fist into the button that disables the automatic shutdown sequence. Warning sirens beeped from multiple displays, including the one in her right arm working the PPC charging coils. She could _not_ let those go critical.

As she landed behind the barrier of fallen trees and amassed mud, she diverted power to her right arm's heat sinks, trying to recover her most potent weapon.

She lost sight of the _Timber Wolf_, but saw its last readout on her target display, and it showed she needed just one more hit to penetrate the other 'mech's torso armor. With that, a few scatter shots from her autocannon could chew through some internals, ending this trial fairly quickly.

It sounded like a plan when a blood-curdling scream erupted over her radio and the _Timber Wolf _under control of the surging Steel Viper saKhan crashed through the dam, sending wood splinters and debris everywhere.

This, Marthe did not anticipate. She was not cool enough yet and jumped over here with the express purpose of buying time to recover. It seemed that Nicole was not going to give her that time and acted with the sudden explosiveness of her clan totem's namesake to retake the initiative and end this.

Ignoring the life-support readout that showed her body heat and pulse rising dangerously above healthy thresholds, Marthe backpedaled and somehow split her attention between every advancing movement of the lethal 'mech ahead and the heat levels of her PPC.

And that attention was so focused that her mind was thrown blank when her rear foot hit a dip in the rock bed on the floor of the stream and almost sent her 'mech straight into the water. In that mental blankness, she was able to ignore the renewed fire from the surging _Timber Wolf_ and throw her entire effort into re-balancing her machine upright and backward again.

And that is when the world dimmed, the background sank away and stretched. Her vision focused like a hunting falcon's on the 'mech ahead, slowing its movements and synchronizing her with the world right in front of her. Nothing else mattered now. The plan, the cluster-rounds and armor points, it all disappeared from her consciousness.

With the reflexes and precision of a diving predator in full commitment, she aimed her PPC at the rear foot of the still firing _Timber Wolf_ and saw as its lead leg hit the same riverbed dip that almost did her in just moments ago. It almost seemed like the particle bolt preceded her pulling the trigger, but it nonetheless burrowed through the moist air and blew the rear foot back and away as the Viper 'mech's center of gravity pitched sharply forward from the trip. Without its rear leg able to get under it in time, the _Timber Wolf_ slammed into the stream bed like the hammer of God, sending a tremor through the earth around it and echoing through the bones of both pilots. Where Nicole used Marthe's own momentum against her to set her up for failure earlier, Marthe turned the tables this time and implemented the same strategy against her rival.

She cut the throttle and forced her 'mech's legs to seize up through her neurohelmet and have it skid to a stop through the now shallow riverbank. Without thinking, she swung her entire torso upward to the right to slice a final PPC bolt through several tree trunks near their bases in a way that made them fall inward across the river itself.

One of them slammed into the back of Nicole's 'mech so hard it forced the nose of the chassis back into the rock, further shattering its cockpit glass and leaving a long, denting impression along the back of the torso.

Another one landed across the legs, settling under the torso and beneath the lower-leg counter weights jutting outward into the air. It was heavy, and though the 'mech struggled, it could not lift its legs enough to dislodge the trunk. It tried with its good arm to push itself to the side, but the length of the tree forced that side to dig into the river bank, wedging it enough to stop any progress at getting out of its pin.

Minutes passed by as both khans studied the situation and contemplated their options. It was so calm after the previous combat, with the sound of running water again swallowing this part of the forest.

And finally, with every other option expended, the cockpit of the _Timber Wolf_ opened and saKhan Nicole Hoskins emerged, angry as she could be. Expecting a hand to hand fight to settle this 'mech combat she felt was stolen from under her, she marched up stream through the waist-high water into more shallow depths, turning to face Marthe with a look alone that could kill. And to her rage filled denial, she found herself facing the opening of the _Summoner's_ autocannon barrel. There would be no more fight, no more chances at victory.

The loudspeaker on the _Summoner_ crackled to life, _"SaKhan Nicole Hoskins…"_ A short silence told her that Marthe was relishing the moment, _"…you have lost. My clan retains its rightful territory and claims a bondsman in response to this insult."_

Nicole sneered, "I would rather die than become your bondsman. Come down here and finish this like a warrior!"

Calmly, she responded, _"You have fought well. I do not deny it. But as of right now, you are competing with a 90mm cluster round at minimum range. The recording of your body's response will be broadwaved over Steel Viper territory in my public address of retaking The Emerald Talon from your bandit aggressors. Lower this conflict to dezgra levels and I will accommodate just enough to make you feel what it is like to be victimized so blatantly."_

"Emerald Talon? What are you blabbering about?"

And that confirmed what Marthe had been thinking all along. That what Kael told her after the council was more than just speculation: Not all of this Viper offensive was sanctioned, and things were at play here that could possibly incriminate both clans. _"It seems that you have been kept in the dark, Bondsman Nicole Hoskins."_ Using that title ate deep into the saKhan's pride, and refocused her immediately. _"The upcoming days will be very interesting. I would hate for you to miss them by making me kill you now. Bondsref is not an option. You are an example to your previous clan. Stand up to the consequences of challenging a Khan to battle. I will not negotiate."_

Nicole was now confused, alone, and ready to go berserk. _What is going on? What the hell is she talking about? What about my Galaxy? I cannot help this bitch fight my clan. I cannot be a part of another failure. I am Steel Viper…_

Moments ago she was willing to end it all in a flash from her sidearm and deny Marthe Pryde the pleasure of embarrassing her clan any more than needed. Her sacrifice and defiance would inspire her people. Or so she thought.

She looked away as her mind wandered, trying to deny the forming curiosity at all she heard in the last thirty seconds. _What 'is' going on,_ she wondered? And the reality of her decisions settled in. The only way she could find out if Marthe is lying or not is by surviving. The only way to confirm to herself that her clan is on the path to honorable victory was to survive.

And her pride fought back one final time, splitting her mind in half and pitting the stubborn defiance of a warrior that years of fighting in the most dedicated of clans has formed against the very basis of human nature. Curiosity won the day however, coupled with the will to live and fight again. One day she would either rejoin her beloved clan, or grow bitter and accept her role as a Falcon, becoming abtakha and dispensing that rage into the bodies of future enemies, one round at a time.

She dropped to her knees and punched the ground so hard it popped her wrist. The pain felt good, and she did it again, and again, and again, until she finally broke her hand entirely. Then she raised her fist up, staring at the blood seeping from between the knuckles, and dipped her head in submission to the hulking 'mech in front of her.

* * *

"How many do you count?" Johansen, the pilot of this disguised craft and one of Gregors' finest men, asked his commander.

"Looks like two binaries, maybe three," Gregors replied.

Thao shook his head in passive frustration, "Well, more than enough to make our day that much shorter."

Ahead of them was the Emerald Talon, in geosynchronous orbit above Marshall. And around it, was at least twenty Steel Viper aerospace fighters. It was not a pretty sight for them.

"Blaze, take us in to the left. We need to pass the belly before you dock." Gregors addressed him by his callsign, which was given after he showed what he could do with a _Vandal_ during an atmo-drop. He could maneuver that thing at full throttle better than any recorded pilot during those drills, and showed his blazing skills in horizontal combat as well.

"Aff."

"Look, there. Off to the right."

They zoomed the view and saw in the far distance a small convoy of Steel Viper personnel carriers. The ships were similar to the one they were in now. Thao had thought that they would have boarded already, but apparently something prohibited that. This erases the presence of a full Viper crew and limits them to the invading party.

"Well, looks like something went our way after all." Thao sounded cheery, but he was already going through some alterations in his plan in light of the new developments.

The sight was beautiful though. With the system's sun to the right, the brightness of the planet reflected off the Emerald Talon in such a way that the sight of its darkened hull in the shade was almost surreal.

As they got closer, they noticed battle scars. A naval engagement had happened here, and the Emerald Talon showed it. While the damage was superficial, it must have been a brutal, short-lived battle. How aerospace fighters alone could grab a _Nightlord_ was still in question. Thao believed that another warship or several more carriers had to have been involved. But he wouldn't know until he had her in his possession.

_"SV 1176, identify your unit and point of origin."_

Blaze looked up at Gregors, who took the mic and responded, "We are maintenance crew members from the Steel Fang's Naval Reserve."

_"Jeeze. They sent you all the way out here?"_

"Aff. The call went out; they seem to be pulling us in from everywhere. This is our new war trophy now."

_"I hear that. Dock in bay four, I will have a team ready to get you started."_

"Copy that. En route."

Then the transmission cut. Thao just looked at Gregors and said, "I am going to get the line ready. Suit up, soon."

"Aff."

Thao left while Gregors went over a few alternate flight paths for Blaze to follow. He caught up with the others in the airlock soon enough.

* * *

The rest of the trip was quiet, with the crew bagged up in the airlock, waiting for their moment to deploy, and Blaze getting to enjoy the majesty of the Falcon's flagship as he approached it, having it block out the sun entirely and seeing its silhouette radiate out with rays of light around the sheen, black, seemingly endless hull. It was the apex of clan accomplishment in his opinion.

It just sat here, weapons inactive, probably due to the invading crew turning the Steel Viper IFF to friendly. The stars of aerospace fighters did their patrols, most likely bored out of their minds. As a pilot himself, he was dedicated to close air support and dropship entry guard most of his career, and never had to sit in what felt like the endless slow void of space. No matter how fast you moved, you never seemed to be going anywhere, not when compared to NOE (nap-of-the-earth) maneuvers. He imagined the sheer awe of a warship up close would become dull after a while, and relished the fact that he could enjoy it now.

Surprisingly, he caught no flak from the patrols, or the _Nightlord's_ guns. How they were so lax at having an unexpected ship arrive from a different corridor was beyond him, but he figured that the infiltration crew was a well-informed commander surrounded by combat monkeys and a few specialists. At least, that was how his clan did it. With the exception of the Nighthawks of course.

He spun effortlessly along the hull of the great ship, and curved so he just missed crossing the light threshold of the sun. He timed it so he would cross the target point right where the light wrapped around the hull, making it near impossible to see minute activity without good sensors and someone's undivided attention.

_"SV 1176, watch your proximity. What are you doing?"_

"Sorry. We have just never seen a warship like this before. The Dark Asp was always in another Battle Group, and the view from here is amazing." He was buying time while he slowed his speed and got to the maximum length of the magnetic line prepped in the airlock.

_"Well, you are getting too cocky for your own good. Get to bay four now or you will be escorted. This is a security level three operation, and I will be sure you are briefed when you get in here."_

"Understood, loud and clear. Proceeding immediately."

A star of fighters already shifted course toward him, but they were too far yet to see clearly what was going to happen.

He hit the signal button to the console in the airlock, and his readout switched to 'open'.

Outside the small craft a four hundred meter line shot out from an electromagnetic launcher and attached itself to the hull of the Emerald Talon. The seventeen members of the strike team were already attached to it with their equipment in tow. Once the end of the line exited the transport ship, Blaze accelerated away to his assigned docking bay. He knew he was in for it when he arrived, but Thao's plan sat surprisingly well with him… if it worked correctly.

Mechwarrior Weston was first, using the electric pulley that was attached to both the rope and his wrist to ride all the way to the hull of the _Nightlord_. It seemed so far. For a ship to get that close in space was damn dangerous, and suspicious as hell. But from an individual person's point of view, it seemed like forever. Especially when you are in a void that extended more light years than one could comprehend. So many things could go wrong…

_No,_ he thought to assure himself. _This is child's play._ He calmed his nerves while ascending to the hull, looking around to see Blaze disappear into the light and the aero-star that changed course resume their normal patrol route.

The ride seemed to last forever in its own right, with no one saying a word. And eventually, with the first sound he had heard aside from the vibration of the pulley since he left the transport craft, his hands landed on the outer hull with a thud. The magnetic tips in his hands and feet were active, so he easily disengaged the pulley to made room for Mechwarrior Kim, who was behind him without fear of floating off.

One by one they all attached, under the cover of darkness. They made their way to the crevice that housed the access port, and found it without much effort since they knew what they were looking for. It was not in plain view of the outside, but under the metallic overhang above, it was obvious.

They converged around the lock silently, with Kim entering the master access code. There was a light in the bridge on a console somewhere telling that the door was in use, but the chances of the Viper insurgents knowing about the Talon's own modifications and altered readouts were just absurd. If Kim were in the Dark Asp, most likely the Steel Viper _Nightlord_ this insurgent team trained in, she would be just as clueless.

Mechwarriors Kim and Carlis were first to enter, fitting into the small air lock and closing it. The only concern between now and their destination would be if the hissing of the internal lock gained any unwanted attention.

* * *

_"Hammer: in."_

Thao listened to his earpiece while hunkered down in the access duct that would lead him to his destination. The teams entered in pairs, with just enough room in the airlock to fit two elementals. Julian was last. With Hammer in, he could continue his way down the dark, square corridor only two meters high. _So far, so good,_ he thought.

Everyone's data pad had precise directions to their destination, so it was going to be quicker than he originally thought to start the party. After Julian was in, the site would be sealed and their footprint would be erased. That alone was tension off his shoulders.

* * *

Mechwarrior Garner worked his way down his assigned corridor for security checks. He was pulling himself along the rope, watching for anything, listening for anything that would catch his attention. With his team taking the Jade Falcon ship, the non-essential crew and on-board warrior contingent were secured, so it was pretty much a ghost ship, which made his job easy enough.

It was his third pass in the hour when he heard an audible click from within a tool storage room. He never heard it on his other passes, and he was bored as hell. So he turned around, and, forgoing the procedure to call in any deviation from his patrol path, opened the door to the room and entered.

It was dark, cold, and quiet inside. He knew he heard something, but didn't know what exactly. One part of his brain told him it almost sounded like a pressure door closing, or opening. But really, in a storage room? He knew he would feel better when he proved himself wrong.

He didn't know where the light panel was, as some of these rooms had them next to the door and others were voice activated. But he didn't want to say the command in case there was a crew member hiding in here as it would give away his position. The light searing in from the window in the door to the hallway was enough to see for now.

He moved away from the door quickly after closing it as he was trained. He then proceeded forward with his needler up at ready and his finger on the flashlight button.

He found nothing out of the ordinary, but after turning a corner around a rack found the room to be much larger than he originally expected. Floating forward, he kept his needler pointing down range and hit the flashlight. Near the door it seemed like a small tool room, but it expanded into a larger one, almost like a work shop. Several packs of tools and equipment lined the walls, with the beam of his light only wide enough to hit one at a time.

He kept moving, silently toward the end, where he found a white door. The window in it led to a small, black compartment. He immediately recognized it as an airlock. "What the…?" he started out loud as his mind tried to comprehend what an airlock would be doing in a storage room.

Sadly, his train of thought lingered a while on why there would be one here, what purpose it would serve, and where on the outside it led. By the time he connected the dots and realized that it very well may have been an airlock he heard from the hallway, he moved back to inspect the surrounding area. Floating in the corner to the right were over a dozen open polymer personnel bags, ones used by covert infiltrators. The hair on the back of his neck stood instantly when he reached for his mic to inform his commander.

Micro gravity does weird things to the body though. A person's senses sometimes misjudge things. Not that there was a mistake made in his mental processing, but it only felt slightly off when the feeling of his thumb over the mic button concurred with the feeling of his jaw being lightly touched by something else.

It was then that his head was violently snapped to the side, separating his brain stem from the rest of his central nervous system, and the view of his small beam of light instantly cut out from his vision to be replaced with that eternal darkness no one comes back from.

Except for the only other one in the room. Julian Buhallin grabbed the needler and turned the flashlight off. He felt no need to secure the bags, or the body now floating lifeless in the dark room. He had a timetable to accommodate. Being one of the few in the galaxy that has seen the endless void of death, and even embraced it before being violently jolted back to this world, he knew full well what the Steel Viper warrior saw, and felt not one drop of remorse about it.

* * *

The bridge, in contrast, was very well lit. Several Steel Viper personnel occupied key positions in the room, along with several of the original crew kept around to answer the technical questions of the new occupants. While some of the Viper crew here were adept at Warship piloting and instrumentation, the modifications done to the Emerald Talon over the decades, along with the unique security measures, prompted them to need that inside knowledge.

Seavers was the floater, checking the power levels, weapons' status, sensors, and reporting directly to the new captain. Ten armored elementals guarded the two doorways on either side of the aft end of the room from the outside, the edges of their hulking frames just barely jutting into the open doorways. They did not have the back-mounted short range missile racks so commonly associated with them for both increased maneuverability in tight corridors and the lack of need. No one wants to fire an explosive rocket in a compressed space craft without a suicide wish.

"ETA on our reinforcements." Star Colonel Maine Grimaldi was waiting for that personnel convoy to reach the loading bays so he could populate this rig with a full Steel Viper crew and transport the prisoners off.

"Aside from 1176, we are looking at ten to twelve minutes. Any time now."

"Finally," he sighed. The Steel Viper naval contingent sent to take the _Nightlord_ warship had the entire operation synchronized. The primary HPG relay hub the Falcons used out of here was disabled right before they entered radar range. He was sure the Emerald Talon detected the emergence waves created by the jump of his inbound forces, and then tracked the drive plume of the thrusters of the relatively few vessels. But you cannot detect the size or class of a ship from those plumes though its direction can be ascertained up to 3.5 million kilometers out. It isn't until about 150,000 kilometers, since his force was using active radar, that the Talon could properly assess the incoming force and conclude that it was a threat. That was how they got their force in place for its operation.

An unfortunate hiccup in the secondary relay hub's disabling by another Steel Viper strike team did allow a snippet of transmission to get through, but the signal was too short to track before it ceased, leaving them no option but to continue as planned. With the Talon unable to call for help, it was on its own. It was overwhelmed by fighters and his own warships, which inflicted the least amount of damage possible to defend themselves. It was efficient enough to have his boarding team actually hit ahead of schedule. Three craft actually docked and their invading crews made it on before the bays were locked down. But once his initial team secured the bays, his follow-up strike force of 50 elementals and 100 marines took nearly thirty minutes to get to the bridge and secure his target points. The result was nothing short of immaculate.

Once he got the ship, a larger convoy of personnel was launched to dock and give him an actual crew to prep for Star Admiral Cynthia Cochraine and her new ship. Sadly, that snippet released before the secondary relay failure got the attention of a Falcon Aegis cruiser, which responded by entering the sector to cut the convoy off. The Viper ships retreated and had to re-route around it, getting out of range and hoping they were far enough away to bypass its sensors when they steered back toward their destination from another direction. They did avoid a lethal confrontation, but the compensation took forever. And now, finally, they were in range. Maine was more than ready to get off this rig and back to a planet where he could do some real fighting.

"What is the status of 1176?" he asked.

"The crew… never exited. We have a team is entering it now for inspection."

"Have them check it out thoroughly and get back to m--"

"What the hell?" Seavers interrupted.

"What is it?" Maine quickly approached Seavers at the sensors station.

"See that?" Seavers pulled up a still-shot image taken moments ago of the planet's moon. Zoomed in near the edge was what looked like five aerospace fighters in a formation.

"Looks like some forces are back there. Can you get the numbers off the craft?"

"I believe so. Give me a second…" Seavers zoomed in further and enhanced the image, getting the call numbers off the sides of the craft. Three were readable. So he hit his communicator and gave a call, "Tanner, did you finish the download?"

_"Aff. About twenty minutes ago. Cracking those codes took longer than I thought it would."_

"Can you patch us through then? We need that listing up in the bridge."

_"… yes. Give me a minute. I need to log back in. I will send it here in a few…"_

Maine got a word in over the frequency, "Secure the hard copy and prepare for transit when you are done."

_"Will do. Tanner out."_

"Scout star two and attack stars four and five, divert patrol path to the new nav point on your screen. We have suspicious activity out there. Check it out, and keep your weapons hot, you may need them." Maine got his aerospace forces to crunch on the moon. It would take a while for them to close the distance, but it was obvious those were fighters out there. While he would put large sums of Kerenskies on them being Jade Falcon, the color scheme was inconsistent with any Falcon unit he has ever seen. That left the possibility open that it was another clan hanging by, too close for comfort.

Seavers then pressed his ear piece with his finger to secure it while he got another transmission. "Star Colonel."

"Yes?"

"There is… no one on 1176. The security team checked it out twice now."

"That is bullshit. It did not dock itself! Get infrared in there and tear the thing apart if you have to. And peel one of them away to secure that access hall. I do not want an incident this close to the end."

"Aff." Seavers relayed the orders to the search team in bay four.

As he spoke Maine strapped himself into the command seat and saw that the Jade Falcon Naval listing come through from Tanner. He had finished downloading all the homeworld and even the Jade Falcon Occupation Zone Naval deployment and data files, something that was designed with enough safeguards to not allow a soft copy to be transmitted off-ship. A hard copy needed to be taken, which he finally had. But here in the Talon, they could be, if authorized, forwarded to the command station for force identification. He punched in the numbers found on those craft from the image, and the listing came up empty.

He sighed and entered the numbers in again, with the results being the same as before.

"What is it?" Seavers inquired.

"Those ships either do not exist in the registry, or are another clan. I am checking the assignment history listings…"

And then he got an answer. The ships were from different Falcon homeworld units, but re-assigned between one and three years ago. He could not get a receiving unit though. He tried several times, but these craft's information just disappeared after they left their original units. _Oh, for Kerensky's sake,_ he thought. This was not only confusing, but extremely frustrating knowing how this top priority information couldn't help him identify a few measly aerospace fighters.

* * *

Above Maine Grimaldi, behind a slatted ventilation port, Thao Prentice watched the situation unfold. _Ten minutes,_ he thought to himself. _Better make it eight._ He knew he had limited time, and contacted both of his hacking teams to confirm they were in position. So far, the Vipers had not tapped into his frequency.

* * *

Mechwarrior Kim and her team were in position, having had trouble with the vent cover and taking extra care observing the hallways for patrols. The router Thao chose for them to hack was not as close to the bridge like they thought it would be. It was in a spot that was luckily easier to fortify and defend if needed.

It took just moments for Kim to open the terminal and pick her way through the wires to locate the ones she needed. Using multiple data pads, one for each system she wanted to hack, she had the main power and comm. signals tapped. She even had the auxiliary lights, weapons, and communications systems ready to go. The engine was a little harder to locate, but after a short game of trial and error, she got it, and told Thao she was ready to rock.

* * *

Weston and his crew had a tougher time getting to their spot. The ducts didn't open directly over their objective, and the first location they chose to exit had a guard near it. So they had to backtrack and take a longer way around after entering the halls below. It was tedious, but they managed to worm their way to their destination. Fortunately, there was a security door outside their location, so after phase two started they could shut themselves off and preserve their own lives long enough to give control back to the bridge once Thao needs it. They chimed in, and he gave them all a countdown…

* * *

Maine was now really annoyed. He still couldn't identify the craft ahead and another report was coming in from the docking bay through their frequency he left open.

_"Two more checks came up negative. We even used IR. Some of those compartments may have shielding though. I have the cutter here, and will be going from room to room."_

"Seavers," Grimaldi started, "tell the lead convoy vessel--"

Suddenly the power suddenly cut off. The doors to the hallway behind him instantly slammed shut while the red alert flashers lining the ceiling started blinking. An alarm started immediately and Maine unstrapped himself and floated upward with the energy of both anger and concern. "What is that?!"

"Sir! It was the main power! The auxiliary should kick in just a second…"

And it did. The lights came back on and all the screens blinked back to life. The sirens stopped and he breathed a sigh of relief, but wasted no time trying to contain a possible incident. He contacted the lead convoy vessel full of reinforcements, "Commander, double-time it! We may have a situation here--"

And then the ship jolted to life, thrusting hard with no warning and cutting him off. Maine was about to yell at the pilot when the lights again died and the guy at the comm. station started cursing.

But there was no time to assess things. Gravity kicked in as they bolted forward into space, and he suddenly fell into the arm of his seat below. Trying to regain a sense of equilibrium, he heard the clangs of metal behind him. It wasn't the elementals trying to get through the closed security doors as they were still trying to open them with the keypad to avoid risking vessel integrity by blowing them open. These sounds were something else…

* * *

Thao kicked his vent cover down into the bridge proper and jumped to the floor with Samme right behind him. Gregors kicked his cover out as well and landed on the starboard side with his team as they instantly started cleaning house.

It was dark in here, with not even the red flashers going off. The lack of sirens actually calmed the atmosphere a bit, until the ominous sound of the bolts clicking from the Nighthawks' weapons caused mass panic amongst the Vipers present.

Armed with light enhancement glasses and G96 submachine guns with AET (accelerated energy transfer) rounds and sound suppressors, they moved quickly and carefully eliminated the stunned Viper warriors present. They were careful not to hit any equipment, as the AET rounds would not puncture the walls or viewing glass, but could damage sensitive instruments. Low frequency aiming assist lights were installed on the weapons, so while the naked eye saw nothing, Thao's team wearing the glasses could see their aiming lasers pinpoint their targets precisely. It was quick, and so was the panic erupting.

Men instantly dropped to the ground, blind and confused. Some felt the warm splatter of blood on them from their comrades and started screaming while others simply heard the bodies falling all around. Yelling and confusion followed as the black void of the bridge was suddenly filled with noise.

One, then another, then another. This ship was taken without honor, so none was offered in return. The weapons were almost silent and the targets were just paralyzed in confusion. The whole thing was almost too easy when Berks accidentally brushed up against a Viper curled up in his seat. He mistook him for a Falcon crew member and left him alive. That mistake resulted in the warrior getting a fix on him, raising his needler, and activating the flashlight before pumping near half a magazine into him at point blank range. The Viper's war cry inspired some others into action, one of which guessed at Thao's location and successfully plowed into him.

The blasting of the needler caught the attention of the elementals outside as they used their claws to start ripping the doors open hastily. The shrieking of the metal made them sound hungry.

Slivers of light shot in from the claw holes in the doors while the body of Berks landed hard. Samme readjusted his aim at Berks' assailant, and in a three round burst forced the Viper's head all over the consol behind it.

The needler fell, and the flashlight beam staggered from the ceiling to the front as it settled on the floor.

But others followed suit with their own weapons. Without knowledge of their attackers, the return fire was random and ineffective. It was then that Maine Grimaldi pulled his sidearm and used the light from the near half-torn door to aim at one of the attackers in the distance. "You stravag bastard mutts!" He screamed out of rage and insult as he unloaded his gun, sending sparks from the impacting frangible rounds off the panel around and behind Gregors. Two bullets perforated his mid section when Thao honed in on the screaming commander and shot four rounds into him: two in the chest, one in the head, and another for good measure, though the effort was too late.

Gregors fell, and Thao could see the blood splattered on the panel behind him from his wounds, telling him full well that time was of the essence.

Then the doors were torn completely from their housings by the elementals outside. Thao's world started to slow down and blur. Gregors fell behind a rail and was nowhere to be seen. Berks was down, and most definitely dead. As he rushed to the rear to confront the elementals before they took him and Nathanial down, he noticed the face of the Steel Viper crewman steering the ship. The man's eyes were locked forward, trying to block the combat out around him to keep the ship from veering too far off course with the sudden acceleration. Even though the man thought he was the next to be executed, he decided to keep the ship on course instead of ducking out like a coward.

Accepting that, Thao's vision shifted to the right to locate Rachel and Danielle, who were already braced and firing their trishes at the incoming force. Hammer got behind them and covered their rear so no one could sneak up on their blind side. In the slow haze, he saw Hammer yelling, spit making its way from his mouth as he raged, completely synchronizing with his rifle which was pumping rounds off at men outside Thao's field of vision.

With that Thao dropped his rifle and flowed in what seemed to him like slow motion as muscle memory and his battle instinct took over. The artificial colors of his glasses nearly blinded him as the elementals were entering from a bright hallway outside.

He drew his trish and dropped to his left knee in one smooth motion. The glasses started their auto-dimming function, something that happened quick in real time, but took forever when facing an elemental that has its sights on you. He knew they had light enhancement as well, and he had but just a moment to aim…

The elementals around his target stopped when something stuck to their armor. The following explosions seemed mute anymore as they blended with the surrounding chaos perfectly. Thunk! He fired the first round, and surprisingly, it hit the lead elemental to his left in the upper right chest. He didn't have time to wait for the round's confirmation lights to register in his head as he moved to aim at the next elemental while pressing the detonation button. Light burst from both the shaped charge into the pilot's chest and the machine-gun arm of the lead elemental to his right. Abandoning his second shot, he dove, twisting through the sparks of the rounds hitting the panel behind him. It wasn't that he could see the individual rounds, but instinct simply contorted him accordingly, making it look graceful to anyone watching.

When he hit the ground, he heard the dull thuds of the first elementals to fall victim to his team as they hit the floor. The panel ahead of his started to explode with ammunition being pumped through it. The elementals opened fire and if he did not stop them soon, then there would be major collateral damage that was entirely unacceptable. He rose, sights lined up already, and shot the second round at the elemental behind the one he just dropped. And with that impact, his world sped forward into real time.

The explosion from the trish round hitting Thao's ears right as his thumb pressed the button on his gun was almost musical. One of the elementals who suffered a wound from a trish round started to feel the paralytic effects of the drugs now in his system. It wavered to the side into its firing teammate, throwing its aim off as the ammunition made its way into the bridge. The second it took to refocus that aim allowed Thao to move to new cover. Most of the bridge crew was either dead or hiding in fear, which made the focus from here out fairly easy.

Then the sounds of a struggle reached his ears from behind, further in the bridge and away from the remaining elementals. The sight of Danielle's body violently spasming under the weight of all the rounds punching through it blurred across his plane of vision as two elementals got a bead on her and fired. Her body was still getting hit as it flew back from the inertia of the attack. He spun around so fast to identify the activity behind him that for a moment, his head movement matched the speed of the blood spraying from Danielle's body and saw the individual droplets making their way across the aisle behind. The sight did not affect him positively.

He finally saw Nathanial throwing a Steel Viper warrior that apparently got the drop on him over his shoulder and into a chair, then elbow dropping onto the poor sucker's neck, taking him out of the fight altogether. But the victory was short-lived as what looked like the last of any moving Viper personnel in the bridge lunged at him, trying to get the element of surprise. Nathanial's reaction was not of Thao's concern. He knew that the elemental phenotype, with his massive bulk, would give him an edge that would end the conflict abruptly and reset his focus on the aft of the bridge, where the remaining two elementals were covering each other from what was left of Thao's team.

Thao himself only had one round left in his trish and saw that Rachel was behind cover reloading hers. Samme was in position to get a clear shot at them if they were distracted, and that notion hitting Thao's head prompted him to yell to Kim and her crew over the radio, "Lights!"

Thao and every able Falcon on his team immediately removed their enhancement glasses and waited that eternal second for the lights to siege the bridge itself and throw everyone's vision into a hindrance once again.

He and Hammer instantly jumped the panels they were hiding behind and rushed the remaining elementals. They surged forward, fueled by their adrenaline and looking the elementals right in their facemasks. They were momentarily distracted from the need to disengage their own light enhancement, and quickly adjusted to resume fire.

Hammer spun to the right while Thao used his legs to thrust himself to the left off a rail and had a round blow through his right arm. The distraction of the hit was enough to mess up his landing, which saw him hit his head on a panel, hard, and end up prone in his enemy's sights.

Hammer screamed in pain as the gunfire nailed him too, and Thao saw the rear elemental's midsection flash, and blood from its pilot fill the facemask. He refused to look at the barrel now turning toward him. The entire elemental reset his stance when getting a bead on Thao's vulnerable position, and hesitated just a moment when a shaped charge hit its leg and exploded.

Its left leg was instantly rendered useless and the fire exploding from its barrel veered upward to reflect it toppling over. Thao could see the flesh exposed from the hole in the suit, and the harjel rushing in to seal it. But the body of the pilot spasmed slightly, sending the suit into a few flickers before lying silent.

Silent was a concept thought lost not but a minute ago, but now its presence was disorientating.

Thao rose and looked around with Samme and Rachel securing the doorways and Nathanial establishing his presence at the bow end of the bridge. It looked like a warzone: bodies everywhere, dismembered elementals with their shredded armor clustered near the doorways, and frightened crew members, both Steel Viper and Jade Falcon alike hunkered beneath their stations surrounded by bullet casings.

"Gregors!" Thao needed a sit-rep immediately. He knew his own arm was hit and Berks and Danielle were down for the count.

"Yeah!" was the response. Gregors slowly rose from behind some debris clutching his side and looking around as well.

Hammer also got up, limping his was over to the far wall where a large medical kit was secured. Parts of his leg were in tatters, but it was still connected and Hammer, being the stubborn elemental he was, complained none.

Thao got on the radio immediately, "Kim, I need everything back online, now."

_"Aff,"_ came the reply over his headset.

Then he turned to Gregors, "How bad is it? Do you need medical?"

"Ehhhh," Gregors waved Thao off, dismissing his concern.

"Of all the times you had to go and get shot…"

"Oh yeah," he quipped. "This feels great. You should try it some time." Gregors winced in pain as he pulled himself upright. The first round hit his sidearm and never penetrated. But the second one ripped right through him. There was a clean exit wound, and, as far as he could tell, no vital organs were hit. He still needed to stop the bleeding though. He started to strip his vest off when Thao finally arrived to assist. With one arm over his shoulder for support, he helped Gregors over a few feet to a seat.

"Here, find a chair, I need to get up there and rein this beast in."

Gregors couldn't speak as strongly as he would have liked, but he nonetheless found a way to get his point across, "Just get me to the command chair. No offense, but you know as much about managing a warship as I do collecting semen from a Boulder Rex."

Thao replied without thinking, "Well… it cannot be that hard. I mean, the animal is big enough for you to locate its--"

"Damn--!" Gregors winced in pain again from the movement and cursed the fact that he was hindered. Thao helped him into the command chair after kicking Maine's body aside and went for the med-kit Hammer was ravaging through. He found the stuff needed to stop the bleeding and seal the wound before picking out gauss for his own arm.

He returned to find Gregors monitoring the Steel Viper presence in the ship and closing several corridors off to slow their rush to the bridge. Several security camera feeds peaked his attention, so they were placed on top of one of his viewing desktops. But the rest was foreign to Thao, who saw it as a confusing maze of menus and password commands, with a schematic of the ship popping up from time to time highlighting certain areas to reflect his input. Gregors was flying through the initial firewalls, ignoring most of the prompts and picture displays.

Instead of trying to catch up and figure out exactly what his fellow star captain was doing, Thao thought it better to utilize his new gear and address their wounds. Mentally though, he was more concerned about the security of the bridge, and why they were still accelerating…

* * *

The scout star that was headed toward the moon to investigate a possible enemy presence suddenly had distress signals invade their cockpits. Checking his readout, the trailing pilot realized that the Emerald Talon had multiple attack warnings. Some internal, some external, but all new. There was also no correspondence with the bridge, so something was seriously wrong.

Making a command decision, his Star Captain ordered them all back to the Emerald Talon and the rest of their units still patrolling. If their prized war trophy is under attack, it may need all the help it can get.

Banking at speeds that matched the sudden rush of adrenaline, the Steel Viper pilot centered the distant Emerald Talon in his viewport and looked forward to some action ahead. It was go time.

* * *

Far behind him, on the other side of the moon, an _Overlord-C_ dropship and twenty aerospace fighters used the gravity of the natural satellite to sling-shot themselves around toward Marshall. They moved as quickly as their maneuver allowed, burning toward the atmosphere like starving coyotes after an injured deer. It wasn't long before they reached the stratosphere and left the situation behind solely in the hands of the 20 warriors they left behind, and all the hell they could cause.

* * *

Several Steel Viper warriors had their weapons up, hearing the warning klaxons echo through the distant corridors. Some of them heard radio chatter from the bridge for a short time, which was really just a collage of panic and gunfire. What the situation was, and their possible role in it was completely unknown.

The detention facilities on the Emerald Talon were definitely not enough to contain the ship's surviving 454 security personnel. Most of the crew was locked in their quarters or massed into the galley, with as many as could piled into the holding tanks themselves. Each tank held around 25 people, which, including elemental phenotypes of significant size, made for a very uncomfortable stay.

The area itself was near the center starboard side of the vessel, with several corridors lined with holding tanks and a central security room. This was far from the armory however, as the designers concluded that any detainee should not have any opportunity to raid the ship's weapon's stash.

Vipers were sporadically spread in the halls, with a select few elementals. More were stationed at the bridge, docking bays, and general holding areas for crowd control, acting as temporary prison guards. When the gravity kicked in, the men present started to group up and converge around the entry points to this part of the ship. Ahead were a few more men, used as advanced scouts to report any incoming forces.

Two of them were near a choke point now, each checking the opposite door. The lights down the corridor were not that great, not like they were in the central area. The air should have been tense, but it really wasn't. There was an alarm, yes, and the radio was crackled with screaming for a moment, but it could have been isolated. The gravity was a sure sign that something was up, but this Viper crew did take the Emerald Talon. They had all the guns and were running the show. Some dissident crew members would not get far if they tried to start trouble.

At least, those were the lead warrior's thoughts when he stood up and crossed the doorway to get a look down the other direction of the perpendicular hall.

There was no sound, no light, or anything accompanying the single round punching through both their heads as the lead man crossed the viewing plane. The shot was lined up perfectly to penetrate both heads on a single path, and the sudden drop of their bodies hitting the floor simultaneously gained the attention of the main group behind.

The lead warrior yelled for the others when some of the lights died ahead of them, obscuring their view. The first warriors responding backed into the first hallway section, easily the most defendable one while waiting for their reinforcements. Those came in a group of eight finally showing with two elementals in tow. The lights flickered down the hall just enough to show both victims in their fallen glory.

Instantly three of the men opened fire down the corridor, hoping to hit whatever madman waited in the distance to accomplish such a feat. And after a few moments, they heard another Viper warrior screaming for them to stop. When they did, he turned the corner into the room, breathing heavy and keeping his gun leveled at the hall behind him. He was still wearing his gas mask from earlier, and his uniform was not in the greatest shape, indicating a struggle.

They ushered him behind them for protection while one of them was brave enough to poke his head around the corner and look down the stretch for any more Vipers heading in.

The first tank's Plexiglas viewing panel let some of the Falcons imprisoned watch everything unfold, as some pushed others out of the way for a shot at what was going on. They just responded to the gun blasts and one was lucky enough to get to the front to see the Viper force arrayed approach the doorway, completely focused on the threat ahead.

That is when the last warrior that got pushed to the back stood up without notice and pulled some kind of mini-grenade launcher from under the back of his vest.

After two quick shocks of light from the backs of the elemental suits, the man pulled two pistols from his pants and opened fire on the Vipers turning their heads in reaction to the explosions behind them. The action couldn't have been choreographed better, with ambidextrous aiming and firing eliminating the entire group of warriors before the two limp elemental suits slammed into the floor.

The bodies dropped randomly, some heavier than others, some blown sideways and others back.

The warrior left standing just turned away and tore his mask off while approaching the control panel on the inside of the containment wall. He touched this throat mic and said something before fire doors on both sides slammed shut, with more reverberating echoes telling them that every hallway was sectioned off now.

He then proceeded to pull a small data pad from his pocket and plug it into the wall next to the access panel that controlled the doors. As he was typing the Falcon in the tank saw one of the Viper warriors stirring on the floor, despite the chest wound he just absorbed. That was one tough s.o.b., and he was pulling his side arm up to even the score with the guy that just killed his entire team.

Several Falcons inside the tank tried screaming a warning, but they knew they were behind a sound-proof door.

As the Viper pumped what was left of his blood into his arm to raise it, the man just continued typing his with right hand on the panel and grabbed one of his pistols from his pants again with his left. Without looking, in one smooth motion he whipped the gun around and shot the Viper in the head, forever silencing the warrior while never stopping his progress on the data pad.

Suddenly, the door holding the Falcon warriors unlocked and opened, slowly at first, but they pushed it open the rest of the way with the excitement of escape. Some were just awestruck at the performance of such an individual, while others didn't see what had happened, but just grabbed the weapons and ammo off the dead Vipers out of battle instinct.

The man at the panel turned and said, "Commander…"

Star Commander Colvin pushed his way to the front, "He is a few halls down, I think. I am the ranking officer here."

The men heard through the walls the other security doors unlocking, and then muffled screaming and gunfire as their brethren were released through the corridors in isolated sections, instantly outnumbering the sporadic Viper security personnel.

"Good," was his reply. He just spoke without reaction to the short-lived carnage on the other side of the fire doors. "I need three teams: one to clear these hallways out and ensure the rest of you get free and into the action, one to intercept Viper reinforcements heading to the bridge from the docking bays, and another to hit the armory. Use the code 77591 and grab what you can to overwhelm them."

"That is not on our passcode rotation list," one of the warriors stated while another expressed shock at what had been said.

"Wait, these are Steel Vipers? What the hell?"

Colvin raised his hand to silence them while they got their reply, "Aff, an entire convoy of them is on its way to crew this ship. So you have to move now." Then he turned to address the tech, "We recoded the main frame, so no hackers could pull any surprises on us."

"How did you--"

The star commander interrupted the tech and instead asked, "Who are you?"

The man actually looked annoyed at having to answer a question as the fire doors slid open again, "Star Captain Julian Buhallin of the 32nd Special Operations Unit, here under the direct orders of Khan Pryde." Then he quickly shed the Viper uniform and finished, "This is a second chance at keeping your ship. Do it right this time."

That line hit the heart of every man in the room. They were gassed, overwhelmed by elementals, and confused with so many alarms and decoyed entry points… In the end, it was their solemn duty to protect the ship, the flagship of their clan. Their failure subdued them enough to be rounded up after defeat, and now the adrenaline of several lifetimes surged through their blood. Some were already running down the halls to the armory already while others picked their new teammates out and literally plowed the bodies aside that so recently decorated the floor.

After a moment Colvin turned around to ask one more question to find Julian gone. Just like that, like a ghost.

* * *

The main power to the bridge was fully restored and the remaining Falcon crew members emerged and checked each other for injury. They were particularly amazed at how they took down the elementals, but were still pretty shaken up about the whole fire fight. Thao replace the Viper pilot steering the vessel with another Falcon crewman knowledgeable enough to continue. He bound his prisoner's wrists and tied him to a chair so he did not have to babysit.

"Got it." Gregors was looking for video feed to engineering to figure out why Weston and his crew did not disengage the engine override. The video feed showed the four members pinned down behind barriers strewn across a hallway while avoiding fire from at least fifteen insurgents.

"Great," Thao stated. "Look up the forward corridors and get me a view on their reinforcements."

"Docking bay personnel are still in place. It looks like all their hallway patrols were reeled in." Gregors brought up multiple camera views and each found some random Viper warrior making their way to engineering to contribute. Finally, he found a screen with several warriors, three with large, segmented backpacks that forced the eyes of both Falcon commanders to go wide.

"Det-packs."

"Shit. They are going to take it out altogether. If they cannot have it, no one can. Stravags."

Thao thought for a moment, "Or they are covering their tracks."

"You do not think this is a sanctioned operation?"

Thao was already looking at another screen, "It has its possibilities. Link me up to these corridors at once, A-4, A-7, and C-7 as well."

"Gotcha. Go ahead."

Thao drew a small mic to his face to transmit his voice over the PA in those select locations, "Falcon security forces moving to the armory, this is Star Captain Thao Prentice, your new commander for the time being. Arm up and immediately head to engineering. The Vipers plan on destroying the core and erasing evidence of their failure. This is our flagship, understood? The quicker the better."

"Think they will go? How do they know you are not a Viper posing as Thao Prentice?"

"They want a fight. Even if it is an ambush, they will go."

After a moment of silence, Thao ordered, "Start the fireworks in the docking bay."

His fellow star captain complied, "With pleasure…"

* * *

SV 1176 sat in docking bay four, which was recently deserted by the security team trying to rip it to pieces looking for any signs of its crew. The Steel Viper team knew there was some commotion in the bridge, but could not raise it for a situation report. Fifteen of them armed up and headed there right away, leaving eight to greet the incoming convoy. They just hoped the situation was contained by the time the new crew arrived, but even if it didn't, the added security forces coming with them would boost their numbers by 300, matching the Falcon forces here before the boarding action.

When the radio frequency the relief team was assigned exploded with gunfire and screaming, confusion ran rampant with the remaining docking bay team, who could only speculate on what happened to their men. One came to the conclusion that the Falcon warriors were free and taking out whomever they saw, which did not scare them per se, but definitely prepped their minds for the power outside the bay being cut and the PA screeching static. One of the warriors near the bay exit thought he heard a scream. With the static being peppered with random pitch anomalies, it was hard to tell, but when it hit again, four of them decided to check their immediate surroundings to make sure they were not in for an attack.

Right when they seemed to get a bearing on the situation, confusion and chaos landed on them like the ship itself. No more than three seconds after the four warriors turned the corner to peer down the adjacent corridor did the exit fire doors slam shut and warning klaxons boom to life throughout the bay.

Instantly the men outside tried to get back in, pounding on the doors themselves and working the keypads. But little did they know, it was a nerve agent contaminant that triggered a bay quarantine, sealing the entire thing off and separating it from the rest of the ship's atmosphere.

Trying to work in a smooth and efficient manner, the tech in the control room identified the reason for the alarm and had his three remaining comrades accompany him to the source. After locating the tripped sensor, they set out to disable it so they could gain control of the bay again.

Working with vigor, the men rushed across the bay to the wall containing the sensor itself, which happened to be next to the open port containing SV 1176. One of the men used the butt of his rifle to pound the wall panel off and the tech used a multi-tool to pick through the wiring inside. The rest watched and waited.

* * *

Several meters away and around the corner, a body emerged from the docked Steel Viper craft, moving slow with caution. Two more men appeared behind him brandishing sub-machine guns and they made their way to the corner where a fiber-optic cable/camera quickly showed them what awaited them working on the sensor.

Using only hand signals, the lead man ordered the other two around with their weapons up. The Steel Vipers had their backs turned while focusing on the technician working the sensor, and two seconds was all it took to rid the bay of all four of them. Again, knowing that his men would be outnumbered in every scenario, Thao had planned to distract any opposition to achieve quick victories around the ship, and this one involving a lead encased hiding compartment and a diluted carbon tetrachloride vapor jettisoned from their landing craft's dirty air ejectors successfully locked the bay down and set his three remaining teammates up for success.

It took mere moments for the three of them to make their way to the command post where Blaze used his master code to access the system and turn the sirens off. He wanted quiet, but needed the doors sealed to stop any Vipers from seizing the bay again.

One of the Falcon warriors made his way to a perch outside the room, while the other looked on and watched Blaze as he accessed the security system to see what the bridge was doing. Within the master security menu, one could see all the activity on the network, allowing the Nighthawks in this situation to monitor each other's activity. He watched from his consol the progress Gregors was making in his role in this part of the operation. He was almost done.

Another screen showed the outside activity, as several Steel Viper personnel transports had started docking in the slots across the port side hull. He promptly locked down the insides of all the docking bays, prohibiting access by any Steel Viper craft. With the contaminant alarm still active, they won't be opened anyway, but it was a finite solution pumped from the craft, just enough to trigger the alarm, and it was soon to be dispersed enough to disengage the warning altogether.

In just a few moments, the lead craft came in, _"Emerald Talon, this SV 2420, requesting initiation of pressurization and access through pre-assigned locations. We have already landed and are awaiting entry."_

He saw that the ships had arrived and lined up to board. So he took the mic and hit the general Viper frequency, closely watching the progress of Gregors in the bridge through his menu. "Attention all passengers, I hope you have enjoyed your flight to Marshall. We apologize for any landing inconvenience, but the docking bays will be locked down for our protection. We will, however, be providing in-flight entertainment. If you look to your left, you will see a variety of defensive batteries that will tend to your every need. Just get their attention by flying erratically in the opposite direction--"

Just then the weapons systems kicked in. The ship actually vibrated with the sudden combined weapons fire, and radio chatter exploded all over the Steel Viper frequencies as multiple craft were torn to pieces.

Blaze continued, despite the fact that anyone listening was either violently depressurizing or desperately maneuvering in evasive action. "Thank you, and have a nice flight."

He turned to see his fellow warrior staring at him. The look portrayed both surprise and disapproval.

"What?" Blaze asked him.

"You had that memorized."

"Hell yeah. I always wanted to do that. Have you not?"

The warrior turned away and walked toward the first door that was closed, "Neg. Delusions of grandeur were not in our field manual."

"Heh, then you are obviously not a pilot." Blaze checked again to see the status of the automated defense systems. Gregors reprogrammed them to target all non-Jade Falcon craft. They all activated at once, spewing death at both the unsuspecting Steel Viper aerospace fighters circling the vessel and the arriving convoy alike. The personnel craft inside the docking bays knew instantly that if they left, they would be targeted and ripped to pieces before they got a thousand meters away.

"I do not envy them…" Blaze said to himself as he grabbed his submachine gun and left the room.

* * *

Tech Tanner worked his way down a series of corridors with his five warrior escorts. He had to admit, having docked after the initial assault, he missed all the action previously. This Falcon uprising, or whatever was definitely a rush that found him rather elated at holding a both a gun and their second most valuable prized possession of this mission.

He downloaded not only the entire Jade Falcon naval force listings, but had detailed history on every craft, crew, and campaign participation. An IFF can tell you the name and clan of a craft, but not who is on it, where it's been, and what else is stationed in the vicinity to reinforce it, let alone a map of the homeworlds with force locations. If the Emerald Talon was lost, under any circumstance, he was to evacuate with the information in hand, ensuring it got to the Vipers on the ground on Marshall. Something positive had to come out of this.

The warriors spread out around him, two in front, three behind. They were cautious, not knowing what to expect. They heard the radio when the docking bay relief team was ambushed, and knew engineering was in a slow advance against entrenched combat forces. None of the patrols were responding either, probably because they were elsewhere reinforcing another unit or locked in a corridor section somewhere. It was just the unknown circumstances through all this that put them on edge.

The group was heading to the escape pods, where Tanner would escape and his escort would either follow suit or pull back and find some combat to participate in. Having gravity sure sped things up as they were almost there already.

Turning a corner, the team found a florescent light flickering while it hung from one end, damaged in a fight. Two bodies were strewn across the floor, both Falcon. "This must have been from the initial assault. We never cleared these halls of debris afterward," Tone, the lead warrior assured the rest of them.

They continued through the eerie space and moved through some less damaged areas until they hit a closed door. It was not a fire door, so Tanner moved in to open it through the keypad.

"Hey, where is Kiln?" Tone's voice had a hint of shock to it, which incited the rest of the warriors to look around and find only four of them present. Kiln was in the rear, and now missing.

"What the hell? He was right here…"

After a moment of looking, it was decided best to get the information off the ship before deviating. So when the door opened, Tone moved through fluidly with the rest in tow. Another body was found in here, this one a Steel Viper. Ahead in the next section they could see at least one Falcon marine prostrate on the floor, suggesting heavy fighting in this section earlier. They moved through and the third warrior had something to his right catch his eye. Stopping abruptly and impeding the flow through the doorway, he found a Viper warrior knifed to the wall, the handle of the blade sticking out from the person's throat and a wide-eyed look of shock on its lifeless face.

"Oh jeeze!" Tanner said as he turned and got an eyeful of the mess in front of him.

"Paul…" the warrior stopped in the doorway whispered.

"What was that?" Tone asked.

"Mechwarrior Paul, I saw him after the siege. He was with me near the bridge before being reassigned patrol duty."

Tone kept his developing thoughts to himself, but everyone knew what this meant: someone was around here afterward taking people out. And with Kiln missing, may still be around. "Keep moving," he ordered.

There were two open junctions ahead with a small section in-between. Tone ordered them to sprint through, trying to make up for time lost so he could finish this and reinforce his friends elsewhere.

The movements didn't make a lot of noise, with only the boots hitting the floor and a little breathing. Focused on the destination, Tone slammed into the bulkhead next to the open doorway heading to the last hallways before the escape pod bay. He simply swung around with his weapon up and visually cleared it while the rest of his team approached. Tanner and another warrior popped up behind him momentarily. "Alright, it is just through here. God this ship is big. I want two pairs heading--"

He stopped when he only saw Tanner and the other warrior. Peering around the corner into the junctions behind he saw nothing. "Where are Jin and Bradley?"

The other two now had a look of worry envelope their faces. They looked around warily while Tone kept them together, "Okay, stay within one meter of each other, and move fast."

They made their way down the next corridor and passed an adjacent hallway where Tone swore he saw a shadow move across in the distance along the wall. His instinct told him to stop and confirm, but his head knew better. If something was following them, he needed to get Tanner off, then deal with it.

They hit the first of the escape pod bays and found all of them locked down. Confused, Tanner checked the vid-screen near the door and found all the pods locked down in the next three sections as well, barring one. After that, a door was closed, which he could have opened, but knew it would take time they would prefer to avoid.

"Fuck, we need to get here," he pointed while Tone looked on.

So they continued onward, finally feeling fatigue at the near run they've been doing for some time now, and didn't like the fact that the next corridor was poorly lit, with several broken lights and another two Steel Viper bodies on the floor. Parts of their suits were ripped open by what looked like a sword, or a machete. An absurd amount of blood was splattered on the bulkheads and ceiling in a fashion that told them this happened with gravity. They booked it extra hard after that, feeling fear creep up on them.

Hitting the last section, the warrior in the rear stopped near the doorway to point his needler downrange and keep his field of vision clear of anything moving. Tone ran with Tanner to the open escape pod.

"You are up."

Tanner was not really about leaving these warriors here. Sure, he was a technician trained in computer coding, but after working this closely with a group of men who looked out after each other like they did, and treated him fairly well compared to warriors he's met in the past, it didn't entirely sit right with him to jump out with this macabre house of horrors around them.

"This is not negotiable," Tone warned to get him moving.

Tanner nodded and looked back toward the doorway to say goodbye to the other warrior that looked after him, to find him missing as well. "Ander?"

Tone turned to look and a fury overtook him the moment he saw the empty doorway, "Ander!" he ordered. There was no reply. "Get gone," he ordered while raising his weapon and slowly moving back the way they came.

Tanner grabbed the swing-bar that would allow him to line his body up for the slide into the escape pod, but he slipped and fell into it rather ungracefully. "What the…?" he asked out loud as he looked at his hands. His palms were red with blood, it occurring to him that this was what made the bar so slick. "Yeah, that settles it," he agreed with himself as he strapped in with the restraints.

A blood curdling cry made its way in through the top of the pod, with a thud and some gurgling following. He knew it was Tone, and he anxiously punched in the launch sequence and watched in suspense as the top slipped shut.

Slowly at first, but then gaining speed, the pod's instruments lit up and it moved to the outer lock to eject. He could still hear the auto-turrets on the outer hull going off, but much more softly than before. Either the Viper fighters and transports were all dead, or got out of range in time to regroup. He was confident that whoever reset the IFF targeting mode of the ship's defenses changed it to Falcon-friendly, meaning it would only fire on everything else. That would mean his pod would safely make it to Marshall.

He held his breath hoping he was right as the pod exited the ship with a final jolt. Relief cooled him when he was not targeted as his view screen lit up with feed from the small cameras on the exterior of the pod. He normally would be trying to absorb the image in front of his face, but the jolt knocked something loose above him, and whatever it was fell past his face and hit his foot on the way down.

Gravity was lifting as he left the ship, but was soon to return as he approached the planet. Quickly finding the light controls, he looked down to see a small, metallic canister start to float up from the floor panel below him. A small housing protruding from the top of it showed him the empty holes for both a pin and an arming handle.

He inhaled quickly in anticipation of death with shock and denial. His mind did not have enough time to fully absorb everything before it all disappeared in a sea of fire as the pod exploded not a hundred meters from the hull.

* * *

In the pod bay, a man watched intently through the view port with eyes as cold as space itself. His earpiece called for him, and he raised a blood-covered hand to press it into his lobe and increase its clarity, _"Julian, we have a problem."_

* * *

"AAAAAAAHHHHH--!!"

Weston moved his head mid scream as a round ricocheted off the bulkhead beside him and whizzed past his right ear. It came by so close that his hearing almost muted out.

But he couldn't waste time worrying about a thing like his hearing. He just swung his gun around the corner and let rip another burst of gunfire down the corridor at the growing legion of warriors wanting him dead. The casings erupted from the ejection port of his gun and strung out across the floor, rolling into each other and collecting near the wall. "Cy!" he screamed, "We need to pull back!"

Cy ran back from his cover point through the corridor and skidded to a halt behind a partition, landing on his back and scooting up to the cover to minimize his time exposed in the line of fire. "Go, go, go!" he screamed back as Weston braced himself for a sprint to the door behind him.

The Vipers who just finished reloading their needlers opened fire at the same time, flooding the space ahead of him with ammo. They weren't all that loud by themselves, but the roar of sparks shooting from the door housing told him that nothing was passing through there but the ammo itself.

"Shit!" he screamed in frustration as he leveled his head forward see Cy's foot slip out from its cover and explode in blood as near half a dozen needler rounds slithered their way through it at unfathomable speeds.

He pulled his leg back in and screamed, the blood still shooting out from the gaping craters in his boot.

In the distance Weston saw Caine poke his head up behind another piece of cover behind the doorway, having made it through already. The other warrior waved his hand in a motion to tell them to get over to his position. That is when Weston decided that this was probably the last firefight he was to be in, and to make the most of it. He grabbed a flash-bang from his vest, pulled the pin, and hurled it down the corridor at the gunmen.

Covering his ears and clenching his eyelids shut, the snapping blast reached his equilibrium enough to tell him it went off. He immediately darted across the temporarily silent opening to Cy and pulled his right arm over across his shoulders to help him up.

Chugging hard, Weston pulled the elemental to the best of his abilities through the doorway while Caine and Jackal tried their best to keep up covering fire without hitting their own teammates. He groaned with the effort, starting low and rising in intensity until it was a full on scream, and then swung Cy across the doorway and behind the wall before dropping to the floor and scampering for cover himself. He heard Jackal over his comm., "We need backup! Now! More Vipers are coming up the halls and I am--!"

The last part was muted out by the renewed gunfire coming through the doorway. It was getting hard to breathe as the temperature seemed to rise. The adrenaline was so thick in the air it almost made it hard to move instead of easier. "Get that door closed!" he yelled to Jackal through the sonic wall off needler bursts. He couldn't reach the controls from where he was, and the rounds started to dent and morph the wall itself from the weight of the incoming fire.

That is when he heard something new. It was rhythmic, and it was getting louder. A pounding that sounded like… an elemental! Jackal finally got the door control to work when an elemental in its power armor started to charge. It was coming fast, and if it made it through the door before it closed, they were all going to die very quickly.

Weston's own trish was out of ammo, so he just instinctively yelled the dreaded phrase, "Elemental!" back into the room hoping someone would respond. But it was drowned out again by the machine gun fire coming from the metallic beast as it fired ahead of itself to clear the way for entry.

The ultra-fast booming of the thing's gun barrel added to its feet and worked its way into Weston's head to overpower his thoughts. He went blank and didn't know what to do. This was the end, and the thought of silence was almost too tempting to accept it.

The door was halfway shut as it seemed to move slower than any door he had seen in this lifetime. Rounds from the machine gun worked their way into the junction and perforated the cover Jackal was behind. Blood splattered on the bulkhead behind it, telling Weston that Jackal was hit, but it didn't faze him as much as one would think because that very same man dove from the exploding cover with his trish out and fired a single round off as the rest of his body succumbed to its injuries and was shredded from the incoming fire. His thumb must've been on the detonation button already, because his body imploded on itself, folding and flailing at the same time while a single, standout flash of light invaded the junction for a mere moment, stopping the clodding of the elemental's feet and replacing it with a tense silence.

As what was left of Jackal's body hit the floor, the power armor suit outside twisted before it slammed into the near-closed door, instantly forcing a massive impression, warping it inward with the weight of the limp beast and stopping it from completing its seal. The clang of metal on metal was sudden and loud enough to wake the dead, except for Jackal. The disturbing sight of his remains forced his teammates to look away and re-focus on the task at hand.

For a moment further, the silence lingered. There was a slit between the door and the wall large enough to poke one's head through. Cy started crawling toward the rear of the junction, away from the door. He moved like a gecko getting electrocuted, moving with all his remaining intensity and working his way to the rear without rising off the ground.

The radio crackled to life in spurts telling them that help was on its way, _"Arriving –pzzz! Seal off the right-- ammo—pzzzt!-- cover--!"_

* * *

Mechwarrior Carlis saw the impact of the first wave of gunfire. It was horrific. Thinking she was getting the jump on the Vipers outside the engineering threshold who should have been aiming downrange at the Falcons pinned inside, her look of shock went unnoticed when a contingent of Viper warriors, seemingly waiting for the Falcon reinforcements instead, opened fire at once, concentrating on the front wall of warriors and blowing them from their feet.

The Falcons behind the front line followed suit and returned fire with everything they had at the awaiting Viper force, taking several of them out as they continued their own barrage. It was a bloody massacre. There was no cover large enough between the two forces to minimize the casualties, and what was once a bright, contained corridor with little pockets of dust and a gleaming handrail was now a dimly lit catacomb painted in deep red and smelling of carbon and gunpowder. The walls were shredded and the surging Falcon security forces literally hurdled the bodies of their fallen comrades in a charge to overtake the enemy force ahead.

Several Falcon elemental suits came up from behind, still shiny from their storage in the armory and not yet singed from the battle. Their heavy feet crushed the remains under them as several war cries penetrated the smoky atmosphere.

Instantly the incoming forces found cover, some advancing up the middle and picking spots to fire from, with others running behind the elemental suits and diving behind fallen debris from the previous walls here.

The fire was erratic and intense, with the weight of the casualties still resting on the shoulders of the incoming Falcon security forces. With the corridor ahead cleared of the small team of Nighthawks now pinned behind the partially closed door, the Vipers were able to advance and dig into the area they were previously assailing while executing strategies against the forces behind them.

Carlis turned and slammed her back into the wall she was approaching, taking a moment to absorb her surroundings to find an open ceiling with access catwalks and ductwork. She thought this could be used to their advantage, but there was no communicating between the Falcon forces with so few of them having radios and she having no clue as to how they were currently organized. So she contacted someone she did know was listening, "Thao! I need to find a way up into that mess! The Vipers saw us coming!"

The response was mostly static and chopped dialogue as the sound of gunfire overpowered her earpiece and the ductwork created interference. Another elemental suit passed her in full stride, shaking the floor as it surged through. Stray rounds hit the ceiling near her head and shattered out debris, some of which dusted in her eyes. Turning her head to protect it, she had to drop her gun to wipe them clean, which just made them water more.

While desperately trying to regain her vision, she heard the cries of the men passing her into the maelstrom, "Up the middle!"

"There they are, there!"

"Get a grenade up here!"

"I am hit! Fucker has a shotgun!"

"I am out of ammo!"

"We need more men to the right!"

"Elemental!"

With her vision regained, Carlis peered around the corner into the carnage ahead to see two Viper elementals working with their claws to rip the door ahead of them open. With her trish empty and no one else present having one, it was up to the Falcon elementals to take them down with their support machine guns. This area has already taken too much damage, any second now the ship will get something vital hit, and it is only a downward spiral from there.

To her surprise, with the death toll weighing heavily on the Falcon security forces, she did see a significant number of Viper casualties as well. The totals were nowhere near equal, but progress was progress. Grabbing her gun and formulating a plan, the warrior next to her was suddenly shot in the chest. Gunfire rained down around her from above somewhere as her gun was shot from her hands before the stream of ammo moved to perforate several more unsuspecting warriors in the corridor adjacent to her.

Instantly she hit the floor and pulled her side-arm from its holster as the screaming of the wounded assailed her ears. Seeing the muzzle-flash of the Viper's needler above on a catwalk, she plugged her entire magazine into the grate the warrior was lying on. From underneath she must've gotten a good shot off because the firing stopped and a bloody arm slung itself over the edge and hung ominously still.

But the distraction was effective. To worsen the weight of time on her shoulders, her radio finally lit up, _"Goddamnit! They are making their way to the core! A whole fucking team of them! Break your way through and stop them from crippling the ship!"_

It sounded like Thao, but in the end it didn't matter. She turned the corner and sprinted toward the doorway ahead, seeing it was completely torn open and catching a glimpse of the last of a string of Viper warriors making their way down the staircase at the end of the junction Weston and his team were in. They were probably gone now too, making this entire endeavor a tragic scar on the pride of their clan. How they could have let this get so bad was beyond her, but losing their flagship in such a bloody mess of incompetence was unforgivable.

The only way to attone in her eyes was to kill every last Viper she saw before dying herself and adding to the shame of her unit. And she had just two magazines to do it with.

Yelling for the elementals to form a wall and crash through the junction, she saw the door in the end sealing up. She knew that the Vipers had access to most everything there now and she needed to get through and keep the pressure on them.

Instantly the Falcon elementals blew through the few defenders left on this side of the door, and then worked it open with both their claws and machine guns.

Her earpiece lit up as she crossed the threshold of the doorway into a dark corridor. The entire area seemed to be poorly lit, down every direction. _"Carlis, they went to your right, to the fusion drive maintenance area."_

"Copy that!" Carlis saw one of the elementals she knew was a Star Commander and called him out. As they all ran behind her in the direction of the fusion drive maintenance area, he separated the front force into teams and had them move in different directions, starting, finally, to coordinate this mess.

Mechwarrior Kim contacted Carlis over her radio to tell her she was behind in the flood of warriors and she saw Bryan running with some more elementals to her right. At least her team was fairly intact.

Then came the defending fire. Sparks lit up the bulkhead ahead of her and two men were hit with needler rounds, probably from farther down the corridor. It was not lit well enough for her to make out any figures clearly past forty meters. The return fire was promising though, as three of the front line warriors poured ammunition back in response.

Thao fed her directions as she went, him obviously seeing the forces over camera stations, and she approached the final turn to a junction where a load of Vipers were stored up. This time however, she wanted to prevent the bloody devastation in the hallways behind. She waved the men down in front, which got most of the movement to stop, or at least slow in their catching up.

Crouching close to the corner, she pulled her last flash-bang from her vest and took the vest off as well. Then she pulled the pin, threw the vest across the hallway opening to see it obliterated in concentrated fire, and used their distracted focus to step out slightly and hurl the grenade right into the mass of them before disappearing quickly again around the corner.

The blast was almost instantaneous, and she was almost mowed over as the entire force behind her surged around the corner to capitalize on the situation. The gunfire was synchronized and furious. She heard a few screams as the forces collided, and it was hand-to-hand from that point on.

But this junction was just another choke point to thin out her forces, as she learned almost too late. Much to her frustration, Thao directed her around the mess, telling her that she needed to go further to stop the demolition team. She waved the remainder of the warriors behind to follow, which wasn't nearly as many as were in battle already, but it was pretty congested in there as it was, and if they could kill more Vipers elsewhere, then so be it. With the majority of the Viper forces busy behind, she hoped that this would end soon.

And finally, she saw light pour into the corridor from a junction on her left. She slowed down and peered around the corner to see a Steel Viper warrior on one knee with a data pad plugged into the control panel on the wall next to the fuel room entrance.

_This is bad,_ she thought to herself. Several men with det-packs were lined up behind him, waiting for it to open. It is one thing to take out a KF drive core and cripple a warship's jumping and power capabilities, but it is another to attempt to ignite the fusion drive fuel source, something that could penetrate the hull armor and decompress the entire ship, or at least enough of it to wipe it from the books forever.

While the thought went through her head and the realization of the nature of this Steel Viper team formulated its own identity, one of the flanking units the elemental commander made several corridors back blew through a side hallway behind the men with det-packs in the junction. They entered the scene with their guns blazing, negating any sense of strategy being utilized on Carlis' part.

She still had yet to catch her breath when she drudgingly turned the corner to reinforce them, sooner than when would have liked as the men were still catching up behind her.

The radio did not work well this deep in the maintenance area, but what static made it over told her that the Falcons were nearly done in the chokepoint behind. Sadly, the sight ahead was not as quickly promising. With all the attention to the Falcons coming in from the right, she got a clear look at the men with det-packs streaming through the door to the fuel room with it slamming shut behind them.

"No!" she screamed as she started shooting at the man with the data pad who was trying to lock them in.

She finally got him in the chest, and as he fell, the plug was pulled from the keypad on the wall.

Nine warriors behind her started to clear out the corridor to her left while the firing continued to her right. She blocked everything out, trying to figure out how to open that door ahead.

With a wash of panic, she typed the master code into the door lock, which was denied. _Shit, _she thought as she typed it again, thinking she may have messed up the first time. Two keys in and a round ricocheted off the bulkhead to her right.

Dropping to a knee, she opened fire at a prone Viper warrior who was bleeding from the chest, but still managed stay in the fight. To her disgruntlement, she didn't kill him, but nailed him in the shoulder before her pistol ran empty.

Either way, it took him out of the picture for a moment, which was a moment she wanted back.

She started to shake as she finished inputting the master code to again have it denied. Then the fire around intensified again for a short stint. She continued blocking it out, grabbing the data pad the man used to hack the door to find it ruined from her shooting at him earlier. She must've hit the pad as well.

Another round twanged off the wall next to her head as she lowered it to think. Those men were in there right now trying to destroy the ship, and she couldn't blow her way in there, not with the fuel inside. And she was no hacker…

Every option seemed implausible, and anger took over as she banged on the door and screamed out of frustration and defeat. But she was just one voice in a sea of chaos.

* * *

The eight men scrambled into the bay, which was again poorly lit. They knew exactly what to do as hours of training had them work off of muscle memory.

The massive fuel tank was easy enough to spot, and they ran quickly away from the chaos behind to the side of it containing the flow valve to the engine. The two with the liquid nitrogen crawled up onto the valve housing itself, being as large as it was, and started their work while the remaining two without det-packs aimed their rifles at the security door shut just moments ago behind them.

They couldn't use cutting lasers or torches to open the valve seal because the fuel itself was condensed hydrogen and the risk of premature ignition could seal the tank before the fire got past the valve safeguards. So they had to freeze it, which took longer. They worked the bolts and valve housing to the massive port sticking out of the side of it feeding fuel to the fusion drive itself enough to crack it open.

An explosion outside kept them sharp, followed with a loud clang emanated from the wall, probably an elemental ramming it from the other side. Gunfire was now pinging off the walls so much it was denting them, making the men inside feel like they were in a metal popcorn kettle. No one spoke, with each man battling within himself to stay focused with certain death trying to claw its way through a thin, metal wall.

Anxiously, the two men spraying the valve finished their work and had the others start the detonator sequence on the packs.

The first man finished. Then the second. And a wash of relief came over the two on the valve housing that dropped to the floor, waiting to wrap the packs to the frozen section. They knew the forces would not make it through in time to stop them.

It was bloody, but they did it: the ultimate demoralization of a clan. The neutering of its prized naval machine was going to mark the beginning of their clan's ultimate victory. Even dead and disgraced themselves, they would be heroes in the minds of their clansmen that would not publically condone the operation.

"That is it! Do it!"

Expending the last of their adrenaline, the two men grabbed the first two packs and reared back to sling them over the valve housing when the shifting image of a man invaded their peripheral vision. And in a spattering of blood, the arm of one of the men ready to swing the pack was forcefully removed from its body. It flew from the momentum of the backswing and the det-pack landed on the floor, skidding back to the man who armed it.

In a smooth, graceful motion, Julian Buhallin swung his two curved blades around, intricately. He dismembered the other man instantly and slit his throat, moving on to the next one, slicing open his chest and spinning low to cut his hamstring.

One by one they were eviscerated. It was quick, quiet, and so abrupt it stunned those who saw it coming to watch it and wait. It was beautiful display, like a dance, with the only noise being the opening of flesh and falling bodies.

It took seconds for all six men to succumb to the dancing blades of the silent killer, and the sound of the bodies falling finally grabbed the attention of the two men aiming at the door.

The first one looked back to have a thrown blade thrust through his right shoulder, forcing him to drop the gun he was holding. And in a blur of swiftness, Julian closed the distance to his targets and spun with his remaining knife to slice the gun-arm of the other man open, uppercut the blade diagonally to open his throat, and spin the other direction to lodge his tool in the chest of the last warrior.

With his body hitting the ground, the sounds of gunfire started to subside outside the door, and Julian walked over to the det-packs and pulled the signal wiring out of each of the explosive compounds. In several casual tugs, the packs were rendered useless and for the first time in half an hour, the tension aboard the Emerald Talon started to subside.

It took another minute for the Falcon security forces to electronically unlock the door and pour into the bay, but what they found stopped most of them cold. And the blood-covered man wiping his blades clean with the clothes of his victims simply stood up and walked out, having the men trying to absorb the grotesque scene ahead of them clear a path for him out of fear and shock.

Not a word was said after that. Not a single remark.


	6. Chapter Five: Ground Zero

CHAPTER FIVE: GROUND ZERO

Normality was something that returned in steps, which included slowing down, losing gravity, and hauling dozens upon dozens of bodies out of the primary corridors. One by one each step was achieved, which slowly lowered the tension in each of the Emerald Talon's rightful crew members but only made Thao check each one off on a mental checklist. It took a while after engine controls were restored to maneuver the ship over the primary enclave's location on the surface of Marshall, where Thao and his team were marking for planet-fall.

Gregors had all the visual data taken from the high-resolution monitoring equipment tracking the Steel Viper forces from their enclaves through their attack corridors to the Falcon ones they were to challenge. Every piece of surveillance would be needed if any foul play happened and needed to be proved. All of it was transmitted to Kael Pershaw in the Iron Raptor as it landed on the surface. He was leading the unit to the primary enclave to observe the trial, which looked to be in progress shortly.

Thao pulled up next to his aerospace support commander and watched the monitor as real-time feed showed Kael in his _Hellbringer_, well, the _Hellbringer_ he gave to Thao when he took over the unit, exiting the unit's dropship and taking point in a march through some hills to their destination. For one reason or another, he decided to deploy south of the main city instead of at the starport near the armory.

"Wow," Gregors started.

"Yeah," Thao continued. "Watching him in a 'mech kind of sends chills down your spine, quiaff?"

Gregors just nodded. Never in their career have they seen their Star Colonel pilot a 'mech, let alone lead troops into battle. Sure, they all knew he did in the past, but with his age and position, the thought of seeing it now never crossed their minds. The gravity of the simple image before them signified the depth of the situation facing the unit, maybe even the entire Watch.

Suddenly the guards near the bridge doorways cleared a path for the man floating through. It was not ordered to be afforded this respect, as much as it was respect itself. After seeing the carnage Julian was capable of bringing to this world, most of the crew seemed to be on eggshells around him, with the exception of a few hard core marines. These were not them.

"Oh, good. You ready?"

Julian, all cleaned up since 'securing' the fusion drive's main fuel tank, pulled his way over to the screen Thao and Gregors seemed so interested in a moment ago. He distantly replied, "Aff," as he worked in close to see his mentor exert his power through the 65 ton frame of a battlemech. Even to him this was something that held meaning, though no one could probably describe exactly what that was.

With him in, the entire team was present. Weston had survived his hold-up in engineering, having partitioned himself off from the Viper forces when they surged through to protect Cy, who now had his foot all bandaged up after a crew doctor operated on it. The Emerald Talon had the latest laser technology in its sick bays, and it definitely came in handy. Caine and Jackal did not make it, and their bodies were stored with the rest of the fallen here, marked so they could be given respects at a later time with their proper unit.

"Alright!" Thao called out to his entire team, which was in the bridge proper with him, "Let us head out to the shuttle. Star Colonel Pershaw ordered us planetside and I would hate to disappoint him now."

They all unbelted themselves abruptly from their seats and left the bridge in single file with a renewed sense of purpose felt by all present. This was the small team responsible for taking their flagship from the coils of the Steel Viper, and let them cleanse its halls from their previous failure. Despite what they would hear in the upcoming days about their charges of homicide and deceit, their gratitude was forever entrenched in the hull of this great ship, and every being it housed.

"Well, that is that. Time to disembark." Thao looked at Star Admiral Adrian Malthus with a definitive look of purpose in his eyes.

The star admiral, a tall man whose history and demeanor demanded respect, stood quickly despite still adjusting to the brace connecting his arm to his waist. He refused to leave the bridge during the initial assault and paid a small price for it. But to him, it was the last of a long exhibit of battle scars. He extended his good hand to shake the one of the man who helped give him his ship back. " We have you covered from above. Godspeed."

The Nighthawks arrived unseen, ignited the fires of war, and will leave just as quickly. Their world was one of controlled chaos, and the many faces gracing the bridge now had seen firsthand the kind of person it takes to live in that world.

After Thao left operations returned to normal. Cleanup was a priority, and safeguarding their communication links was a task undertaken by every capable tech. In no time they would be fully operational again, barring the structural repairs. The physical nature of the ship was one thing, but with the pride of its crew restored it could storm the gates of heaven itself, and maybe even succeed.

* * *

Kael Pershaw had not piloted a 'mech in so long that at first when he adjusted his command couch to sit how he always had, it didn't feel comfortable anymore. The entire experience was emotionally intriguing, mainly because the _Hellbringer _he was in now was the same one he piloted throughout his career. He gave it to Thao Prentice as a token of how much faith he had in his ability to lead the Nighthawks, and how much he had grown under his tutelage.

Thao had made several minor adjustments, those being mainly the sensitivity of the controls and placement of the movable monitors. Standard software and hardware upgrades were installed, which was nothing new. A few modifications here and there and Kael was back in his old ride again.

What really felt different though, was that he had not piloted a 'mech after his prosthetics had been grafted on what seemed like a lifetime ago. His fake leg and bad hand were direly needed to make his 'mech operate smoothly. Any delay in the signal from his brain to the limb manipulating the control could have devastating consequences in combat.

What people didn't know about him however, was that he had better control over his limbs than everyone thought. He actually devised an isometric exercise routine to follow every morning focused on reflex movements and increasing control over his extremities. The fact that he turned incredibly lazy in public to appear weaker than he was often set opponents up for failure when he decides to play on their misjudgment in the worst possible ways. Any more he took particular joy in that.

Today though, he needed that extra control over what others perceived as near completely useless artificial body parts to keep his 'mech upright and pointing forward. And with an admirable amount of willpower and enjoyment at the challenge and reward of feeling 65 tons of death march under him, he managed to work the kinks out of decades of not piloting a 'mech in mere minutes, letting the grace of his machine instill a newfound respect from those that witnessed it.

He took Thao's spot as head of Alpha Star with Star Colonel Gretchen Talasko filling in for Mechwarrior Kim, who was on the Emerald Talon with her Star Captain. Mechwarrior Ras was temporarily reassigned to Charlie Star to fill the gap Weston and Carlis left, while Jackal's absence in Bravo Star left each unit equal with four members. Julian was usually assigned as an extra to Alpha Star, but did not usually deploy with them in 'mechs due to the nature of his role in most operations, where he was on foot setting the enemy up for failure. So his absence was not felt, at least when it came to heavy firepower.

Two stars of the 32nd's aerospace support trinary were already deployed, having escorted the Iron Raptor on planet. With Gregors and Blaze out with Thao and his team, the other eight fighters in Alpha Wing remained docked and would be used as a contingency plan if things really went wrong. Star Commander Gent was placed in command until Gregors arrived, giving him authority over Star Commander Sascha's unit in binary maneuvers.

The only mishap so far into the mission was Star Commander Gent's wingman, Pilot Zane, having heat stress from atmospheric entry crack part of his right wing's armor. The _Jagatai_ was not light in the armor area, so the call was made to keep him in the air until they regrouped at the Iron Raptor after the first outing. Kael did have the dropship crews prep a bay for it in case it later proved to be a problem.

Star Commander Sascha was a freeborn aerospace pilot who tested out of Kael's skill and mental battery tests with ease. Though slowly being more progressive in his later years, Kael Pershaw was still not thrilled about riddling his ranks with freeborn. Though, like the late Mechwarrior Davin, Sascha's contribution to the unit was undeniable. And he was good enough to trial up to Star Commander of his unit.

The second most noteworthy point was his age. While trueborn been known to attain officer ranks near the average ages of 22-23, Sascha was only 19, and showed no signs of slowing down yet.

Luckily, Gent's strict sense of structure and traditionalism calmed Kael's nerves a bit, especially in Gregors' absence. Gregors himself was very creative in combat strategy and mixed with his troops well, though held a high regard for honorable combat and aware enough to dictate every action of the trinary when in combat. Gent was even more traditional, but carried a very different tone. The group of pilots Kael recruited for the Nighthawks was by far the most diverse he had seen in his career. But at this point he simply didn't care as long as they got the job done.

The unit approached the final crest of a series of hills that overlooked the training grounds constructed for the 2nd Falcon Velites outside the city of Renatia. It was a large area populated with empty buildings and defensive entrenchments designed to assist in drills for the Falcon unit to pass the time and train during their tenure here. A small series of trenches gouged the earth near the edge of the grounds, some of which led straight into the hills themselves. Bridges and mock waterways also found their place on the north side. Since it was winter here, snow covered everything, and filled many of the trenches halfway. The cloud cover did make the sky kind of low this afternoon, making them feel like they were traveling into a box instead of an open expanse.

The Nighthawks approached from the south east, and what they saw on approach was fairly surprising. An entire Steel Viper cluster, most likely from their Beta Galaxy according to Kael's Intel, surrounded the northern half of the training area. Inside were two of the three 'mech trinaries of the 2nd Falcon Velites, having their third trinary and their elemental and aerospace forces stationed at the secondary enclave near New Sydney several thousand kilometers due east.

_"Incoming Jade Falcon forces, state your name and intentions."_ The Steel Viper commander probably had them pegged a few thousand meters back as their fifteen-strong ASF trinary was seen in the distance doing general surveillance sweeps. Even with just two of his three wings deployed, Kael's air power still overshadowed the Vipers', who only deployed their aerospace forces in one craft per point compared to the rest of the clans' two. The idea of an assigned wingman was integrated into the core unit design upon the clans' inception, and the Vipers had been the only to deviate. This time around, however, Kael did not question the reasoning behind their deviation like he normally would, but instead accepted the fact that he still held an immediate numerical advantage for the time being.

"This is Star Colonel Kael Pershaw of the Jade Falcon Watch. With me are elements of the 32nd Special Operations Unit here to observe the trial in progress. With whom am I speaking?"

_"This is Star Colonel Allen Dumonth of the Viper Fusilers, Beta Galaxy, Clan Steel Viper. The trial is already in progress. You are welcomed to observe as long as minimum acceptable distance is maintained."_

"Do not waste my time explaining the courtesies expected of combat observations, Star Colonel. I have been adhering to them for twice the length of your career." Kael normally would not point out his age in such a situation, as it would automatically put him a leg-down in any verbal confrontation. But the quick response and its gouging implications were worth the risk as it silenced Allen immediately and asserted Kael's superior warrior experience. He could almost hear the audible groan from Allen Dumonth though the comm. was not active.

Behind, the remaining Viper trinary observing the trial from the north blocked the view of several VTOL transports containing their elemental contingent. Kael figured that the 75 elementals were not bid in the trial and would be thought to be better served forward securing Renatia and the armory in the event they won the trial. The 21 elementals under Kael's watch, which was his star minus the four on the Emerald Talon, rode on Bravo Star's 'mechs, as they were the quickest unit of the three. Mechwarrior Ferra, in the fire support variant of the _Summoner_ in Charley Star transported the last one.

Kael's elementals dropped to the ground and visually marked out objective points if they were to get involved at some point. The three scenarios planned out by Kael were very well developed, and they almost enjoyed having so many options at their disposal in terms of what they can choose to do in any given moment.

Two Viper trinaries of the closest weight equal to the forces awaiting them inside the circle broke from their formation and entered. From above Kael could tell the 2nd Falcon Velites' Star Colonel Dien accompanied his lesser force in the defense of New Sydney. The Falcons on the ground knew that they were in this alone and Kael would watch as clan culture dictated. They simply acknowledged his presence with a verbal greeting and proceeded with the trial as planned.

The Viper forces split in two, one moving east and the other up the middle. A mixed star was lagging behind the center trinary, with both medium and heavy 'mechs probably sticking back to challenge the remaining star after the front ten get their pick of dueling partners.

And it was off. The font few 'mechs chose their adversaries and opened fire with long range weapons. On the ground it almost looked chaotic, but from an elevated view it was perfectly organized and segmented, each unit breaking from its group to play with one of the other kids in the park.

This was a special treat for Gretchen Talasko, who had the opportunity to watch two other clans play out their interpretation of zellbrigen. It is boring to watch videos where one can zoom in/out, fast forward, or get the summary of results in a two-sentence readout at the bottom of the display. But real life was different.

Her career consisted mostly of her units imitating Inner Sphere tactics to train other Star Adder units in the slim hope that one day her clan would actually act like the crusaders they claimed to be and participate in the war of liberation. While that form of combat was much more engaging from a tactical point of view, it was refreshing to see other clans go at it with such choreographed movements. This was more like a dance than a battlefield in some regards.

Star Captain Patricia in the Falcon Velites looked to have not tailored her units much for the coming trial. Some 'mechs in her command still favored long range weapons with a slow rate of fire over the short range pounders. It would have made sense for those units to hit the outside of the arena for a better line-of-fire scenario, but they didn't. Though for the short term, they were holding their own.

The Vipers on the other hand, were much more aggressive than Kael would have thought them to be. Though in one-on-one duels, at once, after they all finally engaged, they simultaneously alpha-struck and charged their opponents. The display was mesmeric, and the radio chatter on the Falcon frequencies relayed the confusion and sudden shift to a unit-wide defensive posture.

The Vipers pressed the charge, with one blowing its Falcon _Gargoyle_ opponent into a building with a well-placed double shot from its AC20. The dust rising from that impact refracted the light from multiple laser barrages behind it, as they were heard but not seen with as much clarity from the distance.

A massive ammo explosion lit a Viper _Crossbow_ from the inside as its opponent landed a precise critical hit into its left arm, sending LRM munitions abound in all directions and launching the 'mech itself in the opposite direction of the now-dismembered arm from the force of the blast. It recovered its balance, but was now on the defensive.

Kael, in truth, was not paying as much attention as he would have liked. He glanced over periodically from the short, looped sequence playing on his auxiliary display monitor. Thao Prentice forwarded every surveillance record the Emerald Talon recorded on the surface of Marshall while the Vipers held it. The footage did not show everything he would have liked, but it appeared that the team that took the warship was particularly interested in watching a crew of Viper technicians in the vicinity of this very arena twelve hours ago.

Zooming in as far as he could, he saw the teams exiting the area with excavation gear and munitions carrying equipment, most likely demolitions from the industrial marks on the carriers. This alone told him that the Vipers had altered the arena in secret without anyone knowing, so he when he did glance over at the battle ahead he paid close attention to the areas he thought may have been altered per the footage.

So far, everything looked business as usual as far as trials were concerned. He radioed ahead and warned both Star Commanders Bree and Marx to avoid certain areas if possible if they were to be around this arena after this was over. Just for safety's sake.

Then, another surge by the Vipers knocked the Falcons back again. When the Falcon warriors found a comfortable battle-rhythm, the Viper Fusilers disrupted it with a synchronized strike and charging follow-up. It was devastatingly effective the second time as two Falcon 'mechs were defeated within moments of the second surge.

Then a third, and a fourth. The Vipers were not sustaining the injuries expected from such a seemingly equally balanced trial force, but they were winning through superior marksmanship and ability.

In the grand scheme of things, Kael saw very few ways Patricia could pull a victory out of this evolving mess. But it wasn't the trial Kael was really here for. This was a matter for the garrison Falcon forces to deal with. He was more concerned with the nature of the Emerald Talon take-over and the last intelligence follow-up reports he received after the council session on Strana Mechty. This planet had a history, and a special place in future Viper operations. Without a Falcon presence to monitor that, several skeletons in hidden closets may get the opportunity to wander free, and that would be most unfortunate.

There was one 'lucky' Falcon warrior down there, in terms of his lack of piloting ability being offset by the wide shots of his opponent. The Falcon's 'mech, a _Mad Dog_ had sustained damage in many of its front armor sections, but just not enough to actually penetrate. Twice he avoided shots that would have damaged his gyro, and Kael paid personal attention to his maneuvering, which appeared unplanned and completely random.

He tried to isolate the warrior's voice over the comm. channels, and easily pinpointed the frantic pitch of a shaky rookie holding onto his 'mech by a thread.

Then the _Mad Dog's_ cockpit was hit, and it continued to move and fire before suddenly stopping. At first the Viper _Nova_ fighting it continued to fire, but then stopped, maybe confused by the lack of activity or showing enough honor to not fire on an incapable 'mech.

* * *

Inside the _Mad Dog_, Mechwarrior Russell tore his cooling vest open to radiate the extra heat his body was pumping into the stuffy cockpit. The last head shot rendered the temperature control unit inoperable and his cooling equipment to stop. He did not know if they were simply resetting from the jolt of the hit, but he was covered in sweat and the warning sirens started to finally burrow into his skull.

Breathing was starting to prove difficult, so he hit the consol that controlled the air conditioner a few times to no effect. He had been in combat before, and even basic training had familiarized him combat conditions abound. But for one reason or another, today, with the built duress from the heat, confusion, and the paranoid feeling that his own 'mech was out to kill him by being especially difficult with his simple maneuvering demands, Russell's mind started to overload.

The world shrunk uncomfortably, colors bled out making everything shades of gray, and the sirens got loud enough to overpower everything and pierced deeper and deeper every moment. The only release he could find was dispatching the enemy. If his world tore him to pieces, he would be sure these challengers' worlds would do the same to them.

With that mindset, reason left the building and was replaced with drive. The forced calm he produced by stopping his 'mech and expending the rest of his patience on trying to cool the oven he was imprisoned in served to only build up tension in the combat.

Without warning he lashed out, screaming all the way, pouring every weapon he had left under his control into the _Nova_ ahead of him and the building to its right. After partially spinning the _Nova_ sideways from the force of his laser fire, he let rip as many LRMs as were loaded into his racks at the base of the empty building next to it. And to his surprise, mid-volley the entire bottom of the structure blew out in a way only demolitions charges could produce. The entire thing blew outward, sending debris into every exposed crevice of the _Nova_ and partially burying it within moments.

The magnitude the destruction coupled with the thought that the arena was rigged in his enemy's favor urged him to charge past the buried _Nova_ in a battle rage that got the attention of everyone in the arena within visual range. He shoulder charged a _Linebacker_ in another duel against his starmate and followed up with another alpha-strike to its center torso after it landed on the ground, completely exposed from the physical attack.

The look of surprise and horror on the Viper pilot's face through the cockpit glass further empowered Russell, who was too far gone to return to the controlled combat environment. He was a force of nature now, one that overheated from that last barrage and managed to kick the arm of the prone _Linebacker _hard enough to knock it lose from its actuator before shutting down, screaming all the while.

Sadly, he blacked out from the heat and lack of oxygen before the results of his tantrum manifested in the worst possible way: The remaining Vipers declared a grand melee and declared the Falcon unit dezgra in what appeared to be utilizing hidden demolitions against their properly bid forces. The rest of the cluster surged into the arena and opened fire on the remaining Falcon forces, along with Kael's men on the ridge.

And that led to him reacting the only way he could justify.

* * *

"Engage! All units, form into assault formations and enter the arena hot. Bravo, up the center, Charlie to the left! Star Captain Gent…"

_"Sir!"_

"Provide air cover from that trinary ahead. Engage at maximum distance and maneuver your lights around to pinch them in."

_"Aff!"_ Kael could hear the engines on Gent's _Jagatai_ screaming to life through the transmission as the pilot boosted his way forward toward the aerial threat. The entire aerospace binary followed, forming a wedge that had the lighter fighters cluster near the edges, preparing to break off when they needed to.

While the fighters streaked across the sky, Kael's _Hellbringer_ thundered forward, downhill toward the chaos ahead. The 2nd Falcon Velites were already in bad shape before Russell kicked the lid off of the trial, but the remaining forces were now quickly overwhelmed as the last Viper trinary was already partially surrounding them in respect to the shape of the arena in its north end.

Suppressing fire made its way in his direction, some hitting his men, but most just kicking dirt up around their feed. The Nighthawks snaked their way down into the lightshow below with their sights already set on targets. The moments boomed out with their running footsteps as they neared the area, increasing the pre-battle tension in increments all the way down.

And then they were finally in, they found themselves surrounded by buildings that were being perforated with which laser fire, reminding Kael's unit just how frail concrete can be. And from the moment the first Nighthawk fired back, it was nonstop heat.

The Falcon _Mad Dog_ that ignited this powder keg powered back up, finding himself in the middle of two tidal waves of 'mechs on a collision course from hell. Kael made his way toward him because he was near a Steel Viper _Executioner_ that was maneuvering for a shot at the front line of Nighthawks as they cleared the first row of buildings.

"Mechwarrior, stand down and exit the trial," he ordered while moving full stride to his destination.

_"What? Sir? No. I have to get back to my unit!"_ Kael could hear the insubordinate pilot breathing heavy. Maybe it was a panic attack, maybe it was a complete lapse in the training program his clan employed for decades. Either way, this warrior was more of a danger than a plus in this scenario.

"Calm down and retreat to the outer buildings. Your unit is already engaged elsewhere." Kael closed the distance, getting real close to the _Mad Dog_ now. Mechwarrior Russell just started firing at the Vipers closing in, mostly hitting the buildings and other cover they were using.

_"Elsewhere? But they are right here! I am taking them down before--"_

The right arm of Kael's _Hellbringer_ raised to the cockpit height of Russell's _Mad Dog_. Upon passing, he twisted his torso and hit the back of the cockpit so hard that while pitching over to absorb the weight of the impact, the auto-eject sequence kicked in and the bolts securing the seat assembly through the air tight seals of the upper chassis blew out, shooting Mechwarrior Russell upward over the arena in his seat. Warriors like that were not only a disgrace to his clan, but dead weight in a battle. The unpredictable nature of his actions needed to be removed before they rendered any of Kael's formulating useless.

Just then, two large lasers seared through the front sensor pods of the falling _Mad Dog_, which deflected the beams enough to protect Kael from that particular shot. Then, as the 'mech fell out of view, the awaiting PPCs of his _Hellbringer_ showed the Viper warrior just what kind of force was moving in to make its day very miserable.

His shot rang true and the enemy assault 'mech, too heavy to be shoved around by just two PPC bolts, changed directions and returned fire with its gauss rifle. The slug grazed the building in front of Kael, blowing a small cloud of debris out in to the air and allowing him that moment he needed for his heat sinks to work their magic.

Not but a moment after the muted light of the cloud covered sun was temporarily blocked by the shadow of the great building Kael was passing, Mechwarrior Lana's _Grendel_ behind him was hit by at least three medium lasers, sending one of her shoulders back in her high-speed charge forward. He heard her voice over the comm. right as she was hit, with it cutting short the moment the pounding resonance of her armor expanding with the heat of the blast made its way over the mic and had her body jolt sideways. _"I have two assaults ahe--!"_

_"I have you!" _Two PPC bolts seared past her recovering shoulder as Gretchen Talasko gracefully rode her _Warhawk_ through what looked like a city park opening between blocks.

Kael pitched his legs left without reducing speed and kept his torso lined up with the _Executioner_ making so much trouble for him. He tracked it on radar and would have it in his sights the moment he cleared the next building between them. And there it was, just in his view long enough to light off his entire medium laser array before another building shifted across his moving line of fire.

Gretchen landed another PPC blast to the 'mech's left side before shooting past at the next target, leaving the electrical excess discharging off the surface of the scorched armor a reminder of her contribution. But Kael was definitely not satisfied with that. His own PPC and short range missile volley stormed through the opening between the next two buildings as he made a wide circle around it, boxing it in and nailing it from all sides.

Suddenly his telemetry lit up as three jump capable 'mechs leaped their way into his combat zone. He turned his head right as the _Executioner's_ gauss rifle entered the equation, punching a hole through the latest passing building so tiny that Kael barely noticed it from the corner of his eye. The wave of the passing slug did register through his neurohelmet though, telling him of the slight shift in weight turbulence caused by its passing gently touching his 'mech.

But his view was focused on the jump-capable _Black Python_ and _Summoner_ landing to his left. Dirt kicked up around their feet as the _Summoner's_ legs were already moving before its weight settled into the earth. Its starmate did not follow, but instead twisted its torso to meet Mechwarrior Rainer in his _Turkina_ before jolting to life across the highway junction outside the buildings proper.

Kael knew the _Executioner_ was soon to be expended and he needed to get the numbers of each force balanced before taking on too many of them at once. Turning in, he found his quarry lining its next shot to him up through a narrow opening between the only two buildings left between them tall enough to obscure view, which was fine with him since he instinctively knew how to negate that threat. His machine guns ripped to life, pummeling the inner walls of the buildings ahead and sending mortar and concrete dust billowing throughout the alley, instantly obscuring the view of the assault 'mech waiting for its window of fire. The shots from the waiting Viper warrior were off just enough to minimize their impact, with its second large laser pinging off his _Hellbringer's_ right arm, but not penetrating.

Using the weapons groupings he pre-programmed into the computer during his march over, Kael keyed his targeting computer to highlight the _Executioner's_ left torso, where the majority of his hits damaged already. And the moment the 'mech emerged in his line of sight around the last building, Kael fired both of his PPCs off in an explosion of light and energy, satisfied that both poured into the target area and opened up a gaping hole that allowed enough light in to expose the left side of the engine housing and surrounding moyomer bundles.

_"Sir! I have three more contacts to our left!"_

_"Aff, mechwarrior. I will take the larger one."_ Gretchen had more spunk than Kael gave her credit for through her calm demeanor. She already dispatched a Viper _Crossbow_ and was now maneuvering to cover Bravo Star's incoming threat. If he didn't know any better, he would have thought she was a long standing member of this unit with the way she coordinated with it.

Hearing the heat sensors light up in his earpiece, Kael stretched the final few steps of his _Hellbringer_ to wait for the tone of his Streak Short Range Missile launcher to tell him that it had his target painted before squeezing the trigger of his primary control stick with his right hand while thumbing the automatic heat shutdown override button with his left. The volley sailed from its launch tubes calmly before the rockets lit up and forced it to surge toward the 'mech ahead as Kael turned his own ride away to face the new group on his left. He saw the lights from the explosion behind him flash across the face of the muted buildings as the missiles splayed out and peppered the surface of the _Executioner_, having one make its way into the gaping hole in its left torso and forcefully dismantling the remainder of its reactor shielding.

The shell of the 'mech landed with a dull thud behind him and the resulting tremor making its way over was barely noticed with all the other combat going on. The only effect that warrior had left was to have Kael's eye glance over to his radar to confirm the red blip fading from existence.

* * *

"Easy Charlie, stay your course!" Star Commander Gent saw the incoming fire generally sway over to the other star in his unit, forcing a few of his fighters to veer off to avoid direct hit and return to their position. He needed his unit's combined opening salvo to have a lasting impact to assure an air victory here, which meant they had to stay together for just a few more moments.

The distance meter between his chosen target and his sensors was ticking away in a blur with his _Jagatai_ attaining maximum safe thrust. He just needed to make sure that the moment he was in range that he was able to beat his opponent to the first shot. As most all clan weapons still had identical ranges, he knew whomever had him in their sights ahead could fire then as well.

Then the readout went from green to red, "Fire!"

Large lasers colored the planet for a moment, almost initiating the auto-dimming feature on the cockpit internal display to shield the pilots' eyes from damaging light. Not only did Gent's heat sensor spike from the firing, but the atmosphere was now warmer, having so many lasers excite the air ahead. But his unit pulled up the moment their barrels went dark to ensure the return fire was not successful.

The banking maneuver in its own right was exhilarating, sucking him back in his seat just enough to remind him how fast he was going, but a return to his original heading re-centered him quickly.

Three resulting explosions lit the sky ahead as the Steel Viper aerospace trinary reacted to the incoming fire. The synchronized wall of laser fire caught three before they were able to evade, nearly slicing parts of their craft from the rest of it. The resulting ammunition and fuel explosions littered the space under the rest as the Viper trinary and the Falcon binary intermingled in a massive dogfight reminisce of a swarm of bees playing a game of tag.

_"Avars bearing two-two-niner! Stay clear!"_ Already a point of his was engaging some light fighters and told the rest of them to stay out of the shifting fire lanes. They were to separate the fighters and force them out of the mix enough so their fire shot away from their trothkin in the middle of it all.

Behind him the only point of _Batus_ in his unit thundered past as they chased to engage their enemy, and his LRMs found a nice, open area to clutter as he fired a volley off after a Steel Viper _Jagatai_ was outlined in his target lock brackets. He knew that may very well miss due to the lateral angle the target was flying in, but if it evaded to its right, his wingman would be able to close on it. To its left, he would.

Sure enough, the _Jagatai_ barrel rolled to its right and forced him to lower his nose to clear a path for Zane to climb through while he covered the left flank. And looking up to see the awesome sight of the other fighter's belly bolt across the cockpit viewport, a flash of light temporarily shocked his vision into blinking orbs for the next few moments, along with the cries of his wingman.

_"Ahh! I am losing it! My wing damn near separated from that hit! Armor at 20! No, 15--! Thrust dropping. I am going down! Gent! I am going down!"_ Black smoke spewed from the right wing of his wingman's _Jagatai_ as the craft shot diagonally toward the menacing surface below. The streak behind it was completely opaque, allowing everyone around to passively track its descent and await the resulting impact.

Gent banked hard to the right to avoid a missile volley sent into his flight path, sucking his eyes back into his head with the temporary G-force. His brain was in high gear, assessing the fighter arrays over his radar and picking a new point to join.

He found one quickly, two _Visigoths_ in his star that were just to his right. He tilted his nose upward to match their altitude when a crack of thunder seemed to penetrate his cockpit from above. A Steel Viper _Sabutai_ blew into two pieces ahead of him from an ammunition explosion in its wing, sending shards of armor and glass toward him at speeds matching most enemy fire itself.

The surface of his fighter pinged with the minute impacts as he pulled his stick tight to bank hard in the opposite direction and avoid any larger debris. The view changed quickly with the bank, blurring the landscape temporarily until he was to straighten out. But the whoosh of another fighter caught his attention before that happened, and the jet wash knocked his thrust out.

With a jolt and a warning sensor, he again slammed back into his seat. His _Jagatai_ hit a flat spin as his wingman finally smashed into the ground below. The explosion seemed to circle him as he was spinning downward during the entire impact.

Three more warning sirens went off and then the air banging at his hull became so loud that he couldn't hear his men anymore.

_"Star --der! Eje-- ow! We --ve you co--!"_

Then his craft jolted again from a hit to his tail as some other pilot was able to pick him off at range. The direction of the spin violently changed as the voices slowly muted out and the ground rushed at him as quickly as the sky receded as the spin gave him a blurred view of both. He then blacked out from the Gs, and never felt the power of his final landing.

* * *

_"Two more over here! That is the rest of the star!"_

_"Cut to your three o'clock and intercept. Malcolm, I want you to sneak through with that PPC of yours and open their backs up to Charlie Star!"_ Star Commander Bree was automatic in her decisions, showing her experience in coordinating her warriors. Malcolm's _Incubus_ was fitted with a PPC, and with his speed he could spin around the second circle of buildings and use that special skill of his to get the attention of the remaining two Steel Viper 'mechs in the area in the form of surprise fire. When they turned, it was up to Charlie Star, with both Asano's _Stone Rhino_ and Ras' _Warhammer IIC_ to punish them with heavy weapons. It was quick and tactless, but in this melee, quick was the key concept to master.

The 2nd Falcon Velites were almost finished, being under-gunned against the initial overwhelming Viper forces and ultimately failing to outmaneuver them. Kael was trying to hold his corner of the arena from the remaining Vipers that were trickling in from the other combat.

_"Star Colonel, we are outnumbered here."_ Bree was now talking to Kael to figure out what he had planned for them. Of course he knew they were outnumbered, but she wanted a slice of whatever was going through his head. Problem was, even the slices were too big to dish out right now.

Medium lasers pummeled the right side of his _Hellbringer_, forcing him to turn to face yet another enemy. He knew they all had to move soon, but he was hoping to link with the rest of the Velites in time to salvage this whole thing. Sadly, the Vipers were making that impossible.

Just then a long range missile volley plowed its way past his viewport from the left, where his radar showed an entire Viper star had formed up and was approaching fast.

_"They are flanking us on the left, with another sprinter unit closing in the rear."_ Gretchen chimed in to tell him her observations while keeping a subordinate tone. He knew it was probably tough on her to take a back seat on this one command-wise, but she was performing well enough.

"I saw," he replied. He ran the scenarios through his head. A mental image of the battlefield he was walking through formed like a chess board in his mind with the closing units of the Viper Fusilers forming a semi-circle around his unit clustered on one side. Each direction would expose him to one of the opposing units. The only question was: which direction could get him to a suitable rally-point? And with the amount of time that would take, how many of the Vipers could amass a follow-up assault and on how many sides?

The swift results of each action simulated in his head, resetting to allow for different outcomes. Each was bleaker than the one before it. So he thought back to the reason he landed on Marshall in the first place and made his call, "Nighthawks, set defensive positions near the south ridge and cover Bravo--"

Successive blasts invaded his cockpit as Mechwarrior Erik's _Timber Wolf_ received multiple volleys of LRM fire not too far away. The force of the blasts spasmed the 'mech backward as each impact forced the world to white for a moment. The last of the missiles saw Erik's ejection seat, pointed south west from their position as his ride was falling over as he went, launch from its housing and spear over the open terrain behind them.

Quickly Kael turned his head to see several _Crossbow_ omnimechs stationed on the ridge to their north, each bearing smoking missile racks. The response was quick from Rainer, whose _Turkina_ was already near the south ridge, _"We have fire support 'mechs on the--!"_

And, interrupting Rainer was the cheering yell of another warrior, gleefully punctuating his entrance over the comm. while providing a light show of his own. _"EeeeeeeHaaaaaaaa!"_

A pair of Falcon _Visigoths_ dive-bombed the lead _Crossbow_ with enough laser fire to make the 'mech fold in on itself before the beams made their way upward again to mirror the last minute pull-up from an extremely high-speed descent. The end of the yell coincided with the final explosion of the second _Crossbow_ as another laser barrage separated its left arm from its torso and blew the thing sideways to the ground.

The weight turbulence from the leveling fighters kicked up enough snow to partially blot the remainder of the support forces from view, and somehow Kael's voice found a way to boom over the sonic maelstrom that was Jade Falcon air superiority. "Sascha!"

_"Sir!"_

"Where is Star Commander Gent?"

_"KIA."_ Star Commander Sascha had obviously taken over the binary in Gent's absence, and was now coordinating the remaining fighters in the unorthodox way he was known for, _"Alpha, take another line at those incoming bruisers! Bravo points two and three, head low to the right and cook those elementals near the bridge! Four and five, how do you feel about circling around and harassing those stragglers at bearing one-one-five?"_

The response was almost humorous, _"Uhh… do we have a choice?"_

And at that Sascha just laughed. Bravo points four and five broke formation and made a wide sweep to get behind the Viper elements that were best equipped to snipe Kael's retreating trinary from behind while the Star Commander and his wingman maneuvered skyward to evade return fire from the surviving 'mechs of his last assault.

"Star Commander, you are to cover us for a full tactical retreat through the southern corridor." Kael turned and moved to the south to let the rest of his men know how serious he was. They were to move, now.

_"Aff. Wilco."_

The Nighthawks fell in line, using the buildings as cover and unknowingly enjoying the lack of sniper fire from the rear Viper 'mechs that had turned to meet their incoming aerial threat. Random fire from the other Viper units made its way over, pinging off the buildings and missing wide to hit the snow in the distance.

Kael knew that the field ahead would not slow any units down that wanted to pursue, so he needed to find a means to escape that offered some protection. And that is when the image of the building Mechwarrior Russell shot up flashed through his head.

"Star Commander Shaine!"

_"Sir!"_

"I want your unit to survey the buildings near the trench line for planted demolitions charges. Report back immediately."

_"Aff! Three, to the right! Two, over to the bridge side!"_

The elementals, who were largely not involved in the battle yet, disbursed along the outer trench line to inspect the buildings Kael's men would soon be passing. While they moved, Kael had Bree's unit, the fastest one of them, head to nav points along the line so they could load up the elementals for a retreat if his assumptions were correct.

The assault 'mechs of his star were slower getting to the rally point, but they made it nonetheless. The Viper Fusiliers were taking advantage of Sascha's forces needing to circle around for more passes, letting them dash in intervals from one point to another trying to close the distance to the retreating Falcons without exposing themselves too much. They were getting a few lucky shots in too, but nothing good enough to throw a wrench into Kael's plan just yet. His real concern was the bulk of their forces rushing in from the north eastern side of the arena. Those units had more than enough time to cool down and tighten their formation. Their entry to this part of the battle would be an instant game-ender.

Then Shaine got back to Kael, _"Star Colonel, the buildings have been fitted with demolitions charges, four corners. At least five out of seven of them."_

"Very good Star Commander. Get your men to a safe distance, stretch them across the south end, and when I give the order, fire on those charges."

_"Aff!"_

Almost half the Nighthawks were across the south trenches now as the Falcon aerospace forces ran another low-altitude strafe on the incoming Vipers. After this they circled back up and started sweeping the field ahead of the retreating Falcon ground units.

Star Commander Bree had a rough time accommodating the narrow bridges though. She was not in a jump-capable 'mech, at least not one fitted with jump jets like it could have been. She let her unit across the final bridge first, turning to cover for them. But with the Viper support 'mechs now free from the strafing runs on the west side, fire poured down on the bridge ahead, forcing her, still inside the arena's threshold, to turn and parallel the edge while continuing to fire.

In the distance Mechwarrior Erik was picked up by Rainer in his _Turkina_, him having been in the rear before the rest of the units. Somehow Erik was able to fit in the cockpit with his starmate, and henceforth found a ride out of here.

"Bree! Get across, now!" Kael was getting impatient. It was moments before he wanted to blow the buildings to clog the Viper advance, and she was still on the wrong side of the trench.

That is when his radar showed Sascha re-routing his unit to cover for her further. Kael was about to object, but hopefully the surprise maneuver would allow the elementals more time to mount up and get out unscathed.

_"Bree! We are coming for you. Get across the trench!"_ Star Commander Sascha encouraged her on while his star formed a "V" and started creating a wall of munitions fire toward the engaging Vipers. The Fusilers started appearing in the open spaces facing the south ridge, allowing them a full line of fire on Kael's retreating 'mechs. They opened fire on Bree, who finally turned away and sprinted toward the ditch.

Lasers and PPC bolts alike burned past her 'mech, some hitting her in the back, while others carved steaming lines along the snow beside her. The barrage continued until a few beams hit home, nailing her left leg and blowing the knee joint out right as she hit the trench's lip.

She stopped as the Vipers gave her a breather and aimed upward to greet Sascha and his followers. Their fire upward was consistent and two fighters met their end quickly while another Viper 'mech was plugged enough to shutdown and another ejected.

Time was up. The elementals would not make it all out in time, and Kael cursed inside his head for his lack of judgment. He looked at Bree in her struggling _Stormcrow_, with her 'mech sliding partially into the trench while limping forward to nearly stumble completely into the snow. He didn't have to zoom in on her face; he knew she was looking at him, telling him to give the order.

"Blow it." Instantly the elementals responded to Kael's command, sending waves of short range missiles over to the bases of each of the southernmost rigged buildings. They exploded in the sequence they were hit, sending walls of shrapnel and debris out across the trench and back into the arena alike.

Bree's 'mech leaned backward in its final attempt to straighten up. And when its balance was finally unhinged with the declining slope giving out under the submission of the snow under the weight of her 55 ton vehicle, she ejected.

Her seat fired through a falling wall of concrete, her head knocking pieces of it back outward as it plowed through with its ejection rockets thrusting full-blast. The Nighthawks were largely silent in that moment, watching her limp body sail over the arena away from them, behind the enemies that were sure to appear over the rubble soon enough.

Two points of elementals finished mounting up and their rides took off through the southern pass. Kael was walking backward, visually tracking Bree's ejection seat, trying to reach her over the personal comm. channel, and failing. She simply never responded, and he eventually focused his attention on the final point of elementals loading up on Mechwarrior Terrace's _Fire Falcon_ ready to sprint to his location.

Behind it the first of the Viper units' silhouettes emerged through the dust. And then far to the west was a _Naga_, the first of the support units rounding the final building to the ridge opening.

The Viper _Nova_ crawling over the wall was ruthless, opening up with an entire arm's worth of medium lasers at the rear of the _Fire Falcon_, and waiting just long enough to follow up with the other arm. The impacts were enough to crush the elemental on its rear handhold and knock the light 'mech forward and off balance.

_"Shit! I need some covering f--!"_ Terrace could not spit the sentence out in time before the jolt of the hit knocked the wind out of him. But he got up and continued anyway.

Bravo Wing's points two and three, heading south after surviving their final strafe before the buildings blew out, altered their course to pummel the _Nova_ from behind. They did minimal damage but effectively turned it enough to give Terrace those extra few seconds needed to get out of range of those lasers.

And all the attention paid to the fighters thundering past the overshadowed _Nova_ drew everyone away from the approaching Arrow IV artillery missile cruising over the snow toward the lone Falcon. As fast as one could imagine, the lead elemental on Terrace's _Fire Falcon_ yelled at the sight of the missile and each of them engaged their jump jets to dismount when the light 'mech's center chassis blew out in a billow of fire and metal. Pieces flew out across the expanse in a shotgun spread for hundreds of meters, and the shell of the former _Fire Falcon_ slammed into the ground with its scorched rear armor still burning.

And that was the final straw. Kael squared his _Hellbringer _at the _Naga_ and ordered his unit to stand its ground until Ferra, in her _Summoner_, could jump jet over there and extract the remaining elementals.

She pushed as hard as she could while the entire unit poured everything they had into the settling rubble ahead. The four remaining elementals jumped toward her as well, meeting her halfway and latching on their final jump. She turned and used the cold to her advantage, jumping all the while like a 70 ton grasshopper as volley after volley of long range missile fire and Asano's gauss rifles hammered continuously at the Vipers who were reluctant to enter such a wall of death.

And when she got within a hundred meters of the last Nighthawk, they all turned and booked it. With barrels steaming and a solemn silence over the comm. channels, the unit abandoned the arena and fled to its dropship. Questions from every member struggled to make it over the radio to challenge why their commander would disgrace them further, but this was not the time. The air was thick with slowly relieving tension, but they continued pumping across the snowy expanse all the same.

* * *

Marthe Pryde sat in her office reviewing footage from the Emerald Talon surveillance cameras with Nicole Hoskins at her side. Star Admiral Adrian Malthus was convinced it was Steel Viper forces that took his ship, but was suddenly coming up short on proof.

Nicole, claiming to have no knowledge of any warship boarding operation was defiant in accepting any of the evidence brought forth from the commander, claiming that it was all superficial and entirely subject to fabrication by another clan, even theirs to incriminate her former trothkin.

The warriors that took the ship bore no codexes or uniform rank or insignia. They refused to speak to anyone attempting to interrogate them, and even the elemental suits were devoid of any evidence directly pointing to Clan Steel Viper.

Of course, logic would undeniably blame the clan since it was the one attacking Falcon enclaves across the homeworlds in a synchronized offensive, but still, since the warship op was unsanctioned, it left itself open to multiple alternate possibilities.

After nearly an hour of footage of troops, uniforms, armor suits, and even dialogue between members during capture, Marthe had to leave the room to attend an important incoming message from one of her ground commanders. She turned in the doorway before she left, "Bondsman Nicole Hoskins," she started, constantly reminding her of her new status, but still awarding her the respect of her bloodname in a truly professional manner, "Continue viewing the footage. You may run out of excuses after a while."

"Using me to incriminate us in this embarrassment of yours is going to tire you out before that happens," she replied.

But Marthe was calm in her response before closing the door behind her, "You are Jade Falcon now. It would behoove you to start referring to Clan Steel Viper in the third person."

Nicole would have scowled at that, but expected it at this point. She started studying the walls of the office and tried to further figure out what kind of person Marthe Pryde was. At first, the Falcon Khan seemed to be so full of pride it separated her from the rest of humanity, but upon further inspection, she found her to be simply dedicated to her clan beyond any definable limit. That dedication forced her demeanor to be cold, and sometimes insulting, whether it was intended to be or not.

The office, however, was boring. It was not decorated in any interesting way and was much like any other pre-fabricated office in the administration complex. After a while, her attention slowly drifted back to the monitor, which was cycling through detention cells and their new inhabitants.

Some had over a dozen men crammed within their walls, others had just a few. She leaned in closer to discern more detail through the grainy footage before a single sight made her heart skip a beat. She blinked to reset her vision and see again if what she was looking at existed or was just a result of the reception, and the image that suddenly rose her interest to unexplainable levels prompted her to hit the communication button that would open a channel to the warship captain.

"Star Admiral," she started.

After a delay, he responded, _"Yes, Khan Pryde?"_

"Neg."

Then his voice hinted at confusion, _"This is the Khan's private channel. With whom am I speaking without authorization?"_

"Bondsman Nicole Hoskins."

His reply was more welcoming now, _"Ah, Bondsman Nicole Hoskins, formerly of Clan Steel Viper. To what do I owe this exchange?"_

_Stravag!_ She thought. _I cannot go two minutes without one of these surats insulting me._ But she set that rage aside for the moment, knowing that her anger would not help her resolve the current situation any. "Please patch me through to cell 606."

There was a long pause as either Adrian Malthus was contemplating his reply, her request, or managing it on the spot. Finally, _"Very well. Let it be stated the bondsman will be monitored…"_

Then her signal reading changed and the screen returned to the image that got her attention moments ago. In it were two shirtless men, one sitting against the far wall of the cell and the other walking around. It was the mobile one that spurred her notice, and the necklace around his neck. She spoke into the mic and waited for a response since she knew the delay would be an issue, "Mechwarrior…"

The man continued to pace around the cell, not responding to her.

That just angered her, which spurred a repeat request, "You will respond when addressed. So I say again: Mechwarrior!" Her command tone shone through, provoking a response.

_"What?"_ His disrespectful attitude further angered her before she realized that he was held captive on an enemy ship and had no clue as to who she was.

So she got to the point, "Where did you get that necklace?"

He stopped and looked at the camera, which was in an upper corner of the cell above him, _"Never mind that. Who are you?"_

At first she was going to tell him she was his Khan, but realized that was no longer the truth. So she responded vaguely, yet truthfully, "A prisoner."

_"You too, huh?"_

"Are you going to tell me?

_"About the necklace? Why?"_

She knew he had no reason to grace her with that information, so she just closed her eyes and imagined a scene that would resonate within him if she were right in her assumptions, "Because Lake Mercer is beautiful this time of year, especially through the eyes of a survivor."

_"Aye,"_ he replied, lifting his head in understanding. _"These fangs are not a trophy, they are a homage…"_

Marthe Pryde slowly opened the door to her office to find Nicole quietly reciting some kind of passage with the prisoner on the monitor, "To the serpent's scales so flowing, to tear its essence from its flesh, and carry it forever."

The prisoner finished with her, though the delay in transmission had her recitation come in afterward, which he understood as such, _"Heh. It has been a while."_

Marthe took a seat next to Nicole, who was focused on the warrior. Little did she know, the necklace he adorned had two Steel Viper fangs hanging from it. It was made by the warrior himself after he passed a traditional, almost secretive rite of passage in the form of survival training only the most privileged Steel Viper warriors were invited to, where they traverse the lethal territory of New Kent to Lake Mercer and are held down while an actual steel viper attaches and injects its venom into their bloodstream. There, on the verge of death is the warrior monitored and administered anti-serum at the last possible moment, where he recites the noted passage and kills the snake, claiming a special bond both with the serpent and the warriors present who represent the elite of the elite and are revered only within their circle of survivors. It is a hidden tradition deep within the clan that Marthe could not have possibly known about, but Nicole had obviously experienced herself.

Nicole, now convinced she was speaking with a Steel Viper warrior, sunk her mind into the notion that these warriors were once hers and had been acting under a separate command, one demanding the utmost loyalty and secrecy. So she asked with a voice that hinted she was one of them asking about their secret commander, "If you saw him again, what you say?"

The warrior thought about his response for a moment, then replied, _"I am sorry I did not kill more of them, and thanks for the second chance. I would do it again in a heartbeat."_

_Second chance?_ Nicole looked confused, but continued, "For honor?"

At that the prisoner laughed, _"Honor? Leave that to the politicians. I was bred to kill people."_ Then he closed his mouth and started working something out from within a hollow tooth next to his tongue, _"If it were truly honorable… to be honorable, then these would not be made in assorted flavors…"_

Then he bit down on the object, forcing its encapsulated substance down his throat and into his bloodstream. He hit the floor and convulsed next to his cellmate, who matched his movements after having done the same thing.

With a sudden immediate concern, Marthe hit the communication button and shouted, "Adrian! We have a--!"

But Nicole removed her hand from the button, intently focused on the dying Vipers in front of her. She was absorbing the horror of it all, accepting their self-inflicted fate instead of denying them. The look on her face was blank, and she never looked away as the shivering men's lives slowly blinked from existence.

Then Adrian Malthus came over the comm., _"Khan Pryde, you need to see this."_

But Marthe was watching the footage with Nicole, and observing the former khan's reaction to the sight of her troops' suicide. Without looking away she replied, "What is it?"

_"Ground reinforcements in Overlords."_

"You should have expected them," she replied as the bodies finally stopped, lying silent on the floor in the distant warship.

_"Not these…"_

She looked away to see what he was talking about as Nicole continued to stare at the bodies on the screen, contemplating what went through their heads, what drove them to such measures, and why they would act in a way to betray their clan's tradition of honor but embracing it enough to protect it from their own dishonor with their death.

Finally realizing something was definitely going on that neither khan had knowledge of, Nicole's thoughts unknowingly left her mouth, reflecting the state of the very fabric of the clan she held so dear, "Something… went… wrong…"

Marthe found her own world spinning with possibilities of treachery, with dozens of unanswered questions forming simultaneously upon learning the identity of the commander of the reinforcements dropping on Marshall unannounced. Sharing the same revelation about her own clan, she responded, "Tell me about it."

* * *

The shuttle was fairly quiet most of the trip down. Having been on the transport to the Emerald Talon, survived the assault with gravity, cleaned up without it, and having now to endure atmospheric entry at speeds near 28,000 km/h, the warriors inside needed to seriously focus to keep their bodies strong and their last meal where it belongs.

Thao had a particularly taxing trip as he watched the orbital readout of the ground forces near his drop point for the majority of the time. With Kael retreating to the Iron Raptor, the Steel Viper cluster in the arena moved out to Renatia to meet up with another cluster and secure the city proper. While the details were not too important to him, he did notice another aerospace trinary accompanying the city force, which was close enough to reroute and pick his shuttle off with relative ease is he were to expose it.

Blaze looked at the readout and picked alternate landing points. The _Mark VII-C_ was luckily designed with VTOL capabilities, giving him a lot of flexibility in terms of landing locations. With the arctic nature of this part of the planet, thawed runways were definitely in short order away from Renatia.

During reentry itself communications were not reliable, so conferring with Kael Pershaw at the Iron Raptor was a wasted effort. But Thao knew that there was always more than one way to accomplish a simple thing like landing in enemy territory undermanned and under-gunned.

"There. Keep us clear from those sweeps." Thao pointed to a storage depot near the edge of the mountain expanse with a clearing to its north and hopefully something useful inside to help them over to their waiting dropship. The forces on Marshall had set up multiple 'survival' depots in the rough regions civilians can use if separated from convoys or other unforeseen circumstances that find them in the hostile cold for too long. In practice, they were loaded with MREs, communications equipment, and sometimes transportation. How well this one was kept up was in question. But it looked better than challenging the Viper aerospace forces.

"Copy." Blaze typed in the new coordinate which illuminated a faux tracking reticle on the main display to reference his destination. He tried his best to alter course at this speed without jolting the ship, as the accommodations for the rest of the team in the cargo bay were probably not as comfortable as the cockpit.

The rest of the trip was surprisingly smooth, though no more comfortable.

* * *

Almost half the lights in the main bay still worked. The crackling of the old equipment supporting electrical current once again echoed off the frozen metal walls like the groaning of an old man whose nap was interrupted.

The world inside was covered in a layer of dust almost as white as the snow outside. It was thick in the air at first, hazing the room with the lights now making its presence known before someone found the environment controls and started the air circulators.

Most of the team worked in the main bay to revive several snowmobiles while Thao, Gregors, and Julian worked the terminal in the communications room, more reminisce of a storage closet with a desk and a fuse box. After some time warming the equipment and isolating the frequency, Kael Pershaw's face glowed in the holo-projection ahead of them. He himself did not glow like so many commanders did after their first, or first-after-a-long-hiatus battle. Instead, he looked as emotionless as ever. _"Star Captain, I see you made it planet-side."_

"Aff. The Steel Vipers looked to have secured Renatia and I could not afford to lose my crew to their aerospace attachment."

_"Understood. Where are you now?"_

"Depot Four, 70 kliks west of your position."

_"Good. Mount up and rendezvous here as soon as possible. The overall situation has… evolved."_

"What is the status of the unit?"

_"Unexpected combat ensued in the possession trial for Renatia. Mechwarrior Terrace is KIA, along with Star Commander Gent and three other pilots. Minimal elemental loss and three 'mechs out of commission."_

"Star Commander Gent?" Gregors shook his head in silent grievance. "I take it Star Commander Sascha took over?"

_"Aff. He performed well, though we are looking forward to your return."_

"So, one commander down." Thao processed it all, "Which other two 'mechs fell?"

Kael hesitated for just a moment, _"Mechwarrior Erik's Timber Wolf and Star Commander Bree's Stormcrow."_

"And she was secured?"

_"Star Captain, I will brief you further upon your arrival."_

But Thao wasn't satisfied, and in a stern tone he asked again, "What is the status of Star Commander Bree?"

_"She ejected over enemy territory four hours ago. Attempts at establishing contact have failed."_

"And her locator beacon?"

Kael's eyes narrowed and he spoke slowly, _"I will brief you further upon arrival. There is much to be done."_

Thao's mind swam with activity, but he begrudgingly responded, "Aff." Then he turned his head, finished with this conversation and started for the door.

_"Julian, stay behind a moment, I need a word."_

And with that Gregors followed Thao out of the room and closed the door. Julian sat down in front of the camera while looking at the projection of his commander's face as it addressed him. _"The following information is to not leave the room. Not even Thao is to know this prematurely, understood?"_

"Understood."

_"I sent a communiqué to my contacts here on Marshall upon learning the identity of the individual investigating our unit. I received a reply shortly after the Clan Council, which prompted me to plan this operation in the first place."_

Now Julian was slightly confused, thinking this entire thing revolved around the Emerald Talon and the enclaves here. The slight cringe in his brow must've foretold the nature of his thoughts as Kael elaborated. _"You performed well on the Emerald Talon, but that was just a necessary safeguard for everything to follow."_

"Follow? Sir, what is so special about this planet? If it was the focus of this trip, then why did you retreat so quickly from the trial of possession?"

Kael leaned in closer to his camera, _"We are not here for the enclaves."_

"…okay. Then what are we here for?"

Even though it was just a holograph, the face of his Star Colonel stared right into his eyes, _"Absolution."_

* * *

Julian entered the main bay after his private conversation to find most everyone mounted up on their snowmobiles. All but four of them had two people riding, with Gregors, Thao, and two others riding single. Julian's sat empty next to his Star Captain's, who was watching the Emerald Talon's recording of the previous trial for Renatia. The footage was less than clear, with some heavy cloud cover smudging fairly large aspects out, including the initial retreat.

There was a strange feeling in the air, and it was not from inhaling the dust as most of it was settled by now. Thao unplugged the viewer from his vehicle's data port and typed a set of coordinates in. Then he looked at Gregors with a solemn face, who replied with an understanding nod.

"I am going with you," Julian stated as he mounted his ride.

"Neg. You are to accompany the unit to the Iron Raptor. I need you to lead them there."

"You do not have a choice." Julian did not so much as even look over when he spoke. And knowing what kind of person Julian is when he decides on a course of action, Thao just accepted the company of his best friend as a blessing and threw his hand in the air to start the convoy off.

They exited the dark bay and entered a world of white. The light reflecting from the snow struggled to sear the retinas out of the riders, but their tinted helmets denied it.

The line cruised almost a kilometer away from the depot before two snowmobiles separated to the northeast. With a storm system approaching in the distance, it did not take long for the two black specks to disappear into the landscape.

* * *

The clans consider themselves to be the apex of civilization, taking the best parts of the last several hundred years of politics and war and evolving them to form the basis of a self-sustaining society with the best possible conservation of resources while minimizing losses during conflicts.

Culturally, they are not entirely different than the people they are claiming to liberate. Television and broadcasts intricately paint a picture that develops cultural egocentricity, members of every caste are known to abuse their position through subversion or suppression of others with the reward of increased power, and even in the most paramount caste, genetic breeding has created subclasses of subclasses: an endless cycle of passive suppression burned into the psyche of every person in clan space. Those that do not adhere to that thinking are eventual outcasts, members of the bandit caste. The stigma there has seen many refer to it as the 'dark caste', bearing a tone of inherent malevolence.

The clans were effective in many areas though, pushing the boundaries of military technology, renewable energy sources, and medical breakthroughs to heights still not envisioned or encompassed by the Inner Sphere.

But while each clan still feels the need to separate itself from its peers, certain fabrics of clan culture as a whole remain as carbon copy as the next.

Loremaster Arthur Stoklas exited his transport to finally breathe a breath of fresh air. A breeze made its way through his hair, waving it to the side as far as it would go and cooling his scalp with tickling fingers of cold.

He gazed upon the buildings of Renatia, the main Jade Falcon city now in their possession. And while he knew some of the sites on Ironhold may have been sculpted to imprint an image of cultural independence, most of their cities abroad looked exactly the same. As did his own clan's. The cookie-cutter style of street layouts and building shapes made him feel like he had walked these streets countless times, though he has never set foot here before.

The three tallest buildings in the city, near the center, almost cut a swath in the low clouds that were invading from the east.

But after a moment, he simply inhaled deep to experience the energy that was always in the air right before a storm and walked across the parking lot to his new command post. Star Colonel Allen Dumonth had done a sufficient enough job to win his trial of possession and give Arthur the foothold he wanted to run his own operations throughout clan space.

What Khan Brett Andrews will give him as Loremaster and head of the Steel Viper Watch was almost laughable, as was the resources given to most any clan intelligence organization. But here, without the Viper leads heading back to command, he was able to make a new base of operations.

His new office was not entirely spacious. He hated wasting empty space to make an office look big. He was comfortable in a functional, conservative setting. The lights remained dim like he preferred, and his aide entered the door and gave him a reporting statement before answering the questions he knew were coming.

"What is the status of the dezgra Falcons?"

"Well," his aide began, "We confirmed it was Star Colonel Kael Pershaw and his Watch. They retreated in the direction of his dropship per the data given by our reconnaissance sorties. But his aerospace forces are still not letting us get close enough to get a view of him."

Arthur groaned internally. While the Viper Fusilers did well against the ground forces, their air force was decimated. Either the Viper training system's elite status did not apply to their fighter program, or Kael had picked crack pilots for his personal vanguard. Either way, it worked in his adversary's favor as the Steel Viper Watch here could not get a good look at what he was up to in the valleys beyond.

"Alright. Any word from the Emerald Talon?"

"Neg. We did get this message recorded from the ship before the defenses were activated and sent our unaware fighters into a frenzy. Everything after that indicates either the comm. systems were wiped out entirely or the Falcons retook the ship."

Arthur thought about that one. Taking the Emerald Talon was one of the first steps in his war against the Falcons. He first used one of their warriors with an overbearing skeleton in his closet to hatch a plan to steal away most of the bloodnamed warriors in the homeworlds at once, which held most exclusively officer positions in command of binaries, trinaries, or clusters themselves. This made many units vulnerable to attack with the sudden absence of their leadership.

Then he took out the main and backup relays the Emerald Talon would use to communicate out-of-system, and executed his plan to take the ship itself. News of that would reach their Khan far after she realized that a massive offensive was initiated against near half of the Jade Falcon holdings in the Kerensky Cluster.

He convinced Khan Brett Andrews to host the offensive and suggested dates and times for the phases to begin, then convinced saKhan Nicole Hoskins to challenge Marthe Pryde for her clan's Strana Mechty territory to keep them off-guard.

All this was used to demoralize the most stubborn enemy he had ever witnessed. He knew Brett Andrews would want a straight-up fight with the clan, but Arthur personally witnessed what happened the last time that was attempted. The Falcon Watch units arrayed on the Occupation Zone planets had gathered enough intelligence on both the resident and newly occupying Vipers alike to let their Khan plan an amazingly successful counterattack. His own counter-intelligence program was proven inadequate, though he kept his job in hopes of learning from that mistake. The humiliation and shame felt by every Steel Viper warrior upon their return to the homeworlds resonated through him because of that. He wanted revenge, badly.

But his need for revenge made him revise his own rules of engagement. If Kael was so willing to set observation units all over to cut him off at the knees, and then later reveal through Dev's findings the willingness to send covert ops units amok to play dirty with the spheroids, then he lowered his own standings a bit to match that of his foe. That alone opened doors he never thought of before, and a plan formulated that needed to happen in secret. So all the Khans knew of this was the attack times and forces needed. He personally devised the plan to use his Falcon contact to call an emergency clan council, as well as the unsanctioned attack on the Emerald Talon. He would take heat for the warship as he could not wash his hand of that if successful, but even to an honorable khan, the gift of a functioning _Nightlord_ that just so happened to be the flagship of your enemy is a difficult thing to refuse. And even if he did, the demoralizing jolt of even having your flagship so nearly lost, let alone taken entirely was enough to push his agenda forward.

If the current development dictated that the warship operation was indeed lost, then he did not have to worry about that blemishing his campaign, provided the troops were able to release the pills that would not only kill them, but release toxins that would circulate and damage their DNA to the point of identifying bloodlines negligible. The process took almost 30 hours, but he doubted anyone on board would know to look for such an unseen toxin and stop it before storing the bodies for later analysis. Proof of his involvement would be erased.

So, with just one more loose end to tie up, he was days away from washing his hands of any underhanded tactic used to set his clan up for success. What the Khans didn't know wouldn't hurt them. It would be their honorable actions later that would erase the stain of their defeat in the Occupation Zone. This was his gift to his clan.

But, with the Emerald Talon possibly pulled from his grasp and Kael Pershaw showing up outside his new base of operations, a new concern formed. Kael was known throughout all clan space for his strategic wisdom and horribly abrasive social skills. Despite his rank of Star Colonel, many Galaxy Commanders in neighboring clans found themselves on eggshells around him. It could have been his demeanor, his working relationship with Khan Pryde, or simply the fear of not knowing what he does about them.

Caution needed to be observed until this situation was satisfactorily negotiated. Kael had to be dealt with for him to work at ease in his new base of operations.

With Beta Galaxy and Omega Galaxy's forces being completely unaware of his involvement in things, it kept any evidence of foul play in the dark from the eyes of outsiders, including Pershaw. The Fusilers were completely unaware of the traps lain in the arena, which were not supposed to interfere with the initial trial, and Galaxy Commander Angelica Zalman thought she was heading this operation with his support, not the other way around.

He had already convinced her to send a cluster to dispose of the dezgra cowards remaining in the Viper's newly won territory. She quickly agreed and dispatched the 195th Striker Cluster with orders to pursue and engage. They had not left yet pending the storm coming in, as there was apparently no rush from her point of view to remove the Falcon presence abroad. And he was not an impatient man. He simply sent a correspondent to travel with Star Colonel Paul Thibaudeau to report back to him and assist the cluster commander with any official Intel he thought to be useful. It never hurt to have an eye on everything from the inside.

He waved his aide off and listened to the recorded message sent from the head of the support convoy before it was destroyed outside the Emerald Talon.

_"Attention all passengers, I hope you have enjoyed your flight to Marshall. We apologize for any landing inconvenience, but the docking bays will be locked down for our protection. We will, however, be providing in-flight entertainment. If you look to your left, you will see a variety of defensive batteries that will tend to your every need. Just get their attention by flying erratically in the opposite direction--"_

Then the message cut off, signifying the destruction of the first quarter of the convoy. He just shook his head and took a sip from the glass of water on the edge of his desk.

He postulated, meticulously to who could have made that transmission. _Was it a crew member? Did they conveniently time the transmission with the security reactivation or was it coincidence… Was it a coordinated effort by a team to re-take the ship? Was that team already there, or was it a responding unit? Who could pull off such a counter operation so quickly? And why has Kael Pershaw suddenly shown up in my front yard? Maybe the Jade Falcons had not reacted like I have been assured they would. And if the bloodnamed warriors did not believe him, then what happened—_

Just then his communicator rang. He hit the 'receive' button and his aide instantly updated him, _"Sir, I have developments."_

"Go ahead."

_"Well, first: The package at objective Upsilon has been procured and placed without incident. The Hessians are standing by._

_ "Second: The 10th Cavalry you assigned earlier spotted activity fifteen kilometers from the Renatia trial site."_

_Good,_ he thought, _that may bear some fruit after all, depending on the status of any survivors…_

_"And third: You will not believe who just entered atmo to reinforce the Falcon forces at New Sydney…"_

Arthur's vid-display sprang to life, producing an image of another two Falcon _Overlord-C_ dropships slowing to land gently in an unseen starport. Next to it was the commanding officer of the combat unit on board with codex stats. As they slowly scrolled upward to encompass the entire entry, Arthur smiled. _Oh, I believe it._

In fact, he had been expecting this for some time and was relieved that some of the answers he craved would result from things now being set in motion.

He set up a trap so convenient that his pet mouse could not help walking into the maze that led to it. But light years away was his true masterpiece, the move that would set annihilation in place. For a moment, he let himself feel accomplished. But shortly enough, discipline reasserted itself and he logically relooked everything in order.

Every catalyst was now in place.

* * *

Thao read somewhere, out of some book in the dusty, neglected area of the Watch's library that Julian recommended, that a man's soul is more like another being that both looks out for its owner and reflects it at the same time. It can be light, or heavy with grief. It can get exhausted and drained with expended emotion, or supercharged with a revelation or epiphany. The problem most people had identifying with their soul was recognizing exactly what it is trying to tell them.

Not that Thao ever bought into the idea that there was such a thing as a soul in that context, but he simply used it as a metaphor to explain the complexities of the human mind and all that goes on deep within it. And his soul, in whatever context made him feel comfortable thinking of it, was torn, drained, and jumping and screaming all at once. In the end, Julian would probably tell him that it is in these moments that they are truly alive, but he would rather be in a coma than have to deal with his brain trying to process all the reasons for his anxiety.

Marshall: his second assignment. He remembered the mental highlight reels for the mere sake that it was his first station as a Star Captain, and therefore held a special place in his past. But he has done so many more… monumental things since, having been the field commander of the Nighthawks.

His first mission took place not but 48 hours after he assumed command of his trinary. His promotion being rather quick after a few decisive victories in his previous unit, he was glad to jump right into the action. It all happened so fast though, he barely had time to research his target. In fact, no information was given past the situation briefing. He nonetheless performed flawlessly, removing the target unit after his fellow Star Captain failed to do so.

The memories however, the ones beyond the highlight reel, the smells, the cold, the snowflakes landing on his cockpit faceplate… they all seemed to come to life again. This planet looked now exactly like it had so many years ago. But despite the natural beauty of its barren landscapes, his soul felt heavy. It felt guilty.

It was what Star Captain Berkau told him in Katyusha. The guy was obviously not in a mental capacity to make any sense. But in his confused state, his passion for what he was trying to tell Thao made an impact. It too wreaked of guilt, and all the thoughts about any research he had done on the unit previous to joining it left a sour taste in his mouth.

Thao, so happy from his first victory as a Star Captain, accepted the high he got from the combat and neglected to acknowledge the very essence of human nature: curiosity. He just took what he was given and feasted on the praise received from his commander.

If he did so well, then why now, of all the times, would he feel like this? He was insanely successful in the Nighthawks, especially given the nature of their missions. Everything he did before this unit was in retrospect a step to get where he is and nothing more. Or so he kept trying to convince himself.

And then there was his disobeying his commander not but a few hours ago. He looked at Kael as a mentor. The man has done so much for him by grooming his mind to be the strategic beast it was. And yet, when he was needed in what is turning out to be the most important mission in this unit's existence, he left him high and dry.

Confronting Kael later sparked its own ping of fear in Thao's head, but he felt better ignoring that thought and was partially glad that the reason for doing so more than justified him on a personal level. Which just bothered him all the same.

Bree was his second in command, his confidant and friend. While it was merely discouraged to have exclusive relationships with subordinates, Thao flat out forbade it since any conflict of interest was unprofessional to him. Bree respected that, though saw him alone on those nights after long battles having lost men, absorbing the weight of the world on his shoulders to spare everyone else any grief and had more than once offered solace. The connection between them was always a hair's distance from manifesting itself, and stayed that way until the tension built was unmistakable.

But the past few days have really made him reevaluate his stance, on everything. The clan whose values he so tried to uphold wanted him dead, hung from his 'mech as he heard in the council, and now, again behind enemy lines in a place that is so hauntingly familiar, it is not the clan he wants to protect, but her. She stuck with him through everything. She voiced her opinion and concerns for as long as he remembered. She was a capable commander, demanding respect when needed and granting freedom when earned.

There was always more going through her head than she would ever admit, no less display. Her faith in his ability to lead was unwavering, her loyalty exemplary. The professional side of him justified his actions by preserving valuable resources, her skills as a warrior and commander being very valuable and worthy of risk for preservation.

But he knew this was not professional. With his diet 'soul searching' the last few days, he decided that the world as he knew it could crumble on a moment's notice. While that reality is never far from a clan warrior's mindset, the idea of losing image, honor, and place in his clan was overshadowed by losing her. And that reality changed his world more than any trial or conviction of mass murder.

Beside him was the one man who understood this, though he didn't have to say it. Julian was the most proficient psychologist Thao had ever known next to Kael, having the ability to read into any social situation and identify every motive, emotion, and conflict therein. And not but a day ago he saw the emotions within Thao that he himself didn't even recognize and told him that she wanted to talk to him.

That was, of course, not true. She hadn't said anything to Julian. But his intervention started Thao on this path of self-realization and caused their discourse. He wondered if Julian could read his thoughts right now. If he could see through the dark face mask of his helmet and explain every facet of his world to him like a cook reading a recipe from a list.

And that very thought, as fate would have it, was interrupted by Julian himself waving Thao over in his direction before veering to the right and stopping near something of interest to him.

* * *

"Two hours." Julian touched the imprint in the snow with his bare hand, as if to absorb something metaphysical to help him out. Tracks in the field showed someone had traveled through here recently on foot, and with Bree being the only person Thao could imagine out in this area, he started to look in the distance to see if there were any more signs of her.

After a moment, he knelt down next to Julian, who was looking down the plain as well. "Julian?"

"Yeah."

"Back on Kenton… I am sorry for pulling my gun on you when you left for Ashley. I did not understand…"

"I did not expect you to."

"Well, I am glad you went. For her sake, for yours."

"You understand now?" Julian stood up and started following the tracks on foot for a short distance.

"I am beginning to." Thao then looked up and saw the dark clouds rolling in from the east. There was no lightning or increased wind yet. But after being stationed here so long ago, he knew it would be heavy snowfall for several straight hours. Maybe through the night. "Thank you for coming with me. I owe you one."

"You owe me two. Another one for getting your ass caught not but four hours after I took the beating of a lifetime to let you escape Dev's goons in Katyusha."

"Yeah, about that…" That was definitely something he was not proud of, but hasn't had to answer for yet. But he didn't have the chance to dwell on it long as they both saw a large imprint ahead in the snow. It looked like someone fell and thrashed around a bit before continuing on.

The situation was obviously bleak. Either Bree was extremely exhausted from her hike or was injured and had trouble managing the relatively even terrain. Both ideas sent spikes of concern up Thao's spine, which he used to fuel himself back into action again. "We follow."

Then both of them geared up and returned to their snowmobiles. The airy silence was again interrupted by the buzzing engines of their rides as they glided over the unbroken plane of snow after their objective.

* * *

It was only fifteen minutes before they saw a dark silhouette slowly plodding through the snow in the distance. They were already going at full speed on the snowmobiles, so the sudden urgency went relatively unnoticed as they approached.

Star Commander Bree, wearing only her cooling vest and pilot uniform, which was not very appropriate when negotiating a frozen tundra like this one, struggled to keep her balance as the sound of the snowmobiles grew louder in her ears. She almost appeared to not acknowledge the approaching vehicles at all at first, though when she did, the act of turning around sent her again into the snow.

Thao skidded sideways to a stop near her as she struggled to regain a sense of balance. He jumped from his vehicle and ran to her, helping her up immediately and removing his coat and helmet. As he draped the jacket over her shoulders, he noticed one of her eyes was very bloodshot, and some of that very same substance had dried down the side of her head as an obvious head wound effected her sense of reality and physical coordination. She was cold to the touch, much too cold for Thao's tastes, which made him concerned about extended exposure to the elements and possible frostbite.

He asked her if she was okay, if she knew who he was, but her replies were muted and muffled. Her short blond hair was wet from the snow that soaked into it upon her struggles with gravity, and one side of it was stained a reddish hue to tell of her head wound and the bleeding that hopefully stopped by now.

She leaned on him for support as he immediately took a protective role. He fit his helmet on her and carried her to his snowmobile with a look of relief on his face that even made Julian smile under his visor. They made it in time, though the display of that feeling of accomplishment was quickly overshadowed with concern for her recovery. Thao only hoped they got her in time to reward her for her drive and stubborn refusal to curl up and die given the circumstances. While Julian knew why Thao could have been attracted to her, that alone spoke words of her independence and strength. She was a true Fal—

Julian's head snapped to the side. He heard something. A heavy footfall in the distance registered in his head. It was quiet, very quiet in the whistling wind that was slowly picking up as the afternoon was rearing for an end. But his instinct told him what it was. Without any evidence or visual reinforcement, he was convinced their safety was compromised.

"Hey!"

Thao turned to face Julian after he slowly helped Bree onto the back of his snowmobile. Julian just waved his hand in a motion that told Thao to get moving, fast. And behind him, almost to explain why he was giving the motion though he couldn't see it himself, was a Steel Viper _Kit Fox_ cresting a hill in the distance.

_Those filthy bastards! They used her as bait! Watching her slowly die out here!_ Thao's snowmobile roared to life as he opened the throttle all the way and felt Bree brace him tight as the front end popped up slightly in response to the sudden acceleration. An autocannon shell slammed into the ground right ahead of Julian as his ride roared to life as well, kicking up a wall of snow that he simply plowed through. His sudden burst of speed allowed him to jump the small crater and keep pace with Thao, who was turning his vehicle accordingly so his mirrors could capture the rest of the hilltop behind them.

A _Hankyu _and an _Ice Ferret_ emerged as well, running at full speed to get him in range for their choice of weapons.

Bree clenched her eyes shut to block out the visual rush of the snow covered ground blazing by underneath. She felt light headed with the new threat approaching behind, having a consistent train of thought proving difficult enough to maintain without the renewed tension. But her instincts were stronger than her concussion, and when 'mechs fire at you when you are on foot, anything short of an extreme sense of urgency means you are already dead.

Julian started swerving to the left and right at irregular intervals to keep the LRM target tracking from the _Hankyu_ one step from locking on him. His efforts proved useful as a salvo from each of its launchers missed their mark and sent shockwaves surging through both vehicles from the surrounding explosions.

They were caught out in the open and now rushing for the nearest entrance to the protective hills ahead. The mountains themselves started not too far from here, but far enough that they would likely be dead before entering.

A PPC bolt from the _Ice Ferret_ gouged the earth open to Thao's right as his own evasive driving was effective for the moment. He felt the heat from it though, and saw the snow continue to melt away at an incredible speed from the center of the small canyon in both directions before the site passed and was long behind. Two more 'mechs appeared in the mirrors as he was panning them across the tops still while veering side to side. Two _Battle Cobras_ entered the scene, but were too far away to assist their starmates. They were probably the heavy gunners there to help the star if any significant force was sent to retrieve Bree.

The idea of them letting her bumble around while bleeding from the head like that, freezing in the cold for hours on end made his own blood boil. He knew the Steel Vipers to be honorable warriors in his past dealings with them. Maybe the polar opposite when it came to political views, but as worthy an opponent as any other he had known. These were different. These had insulted him personally by leaving her to her own devices. He had to get through this; there was simply no other option his brain could fathom. Capture, death, it was all the same anymore.

The _Hankyu _and _Ice Ferret_ were slowly gaining on them as the intensity of the fire increased accordingly. Another volley of LRMs made their way over to Thao and rocked his vehicle again with their concussive blasts as they hit the ground near enough to make him feel it. He swerved to the right as the second wave hit, and with the jolt Bree lost her hand hold on him and slipped off the rear.

In an instant everything blinked from existence. The 'mechs behind him, the rush of freezing air slamming into his face, and the blue shock of another PPC bolt surging past him all became distant background clutter as he turned his body around in reaction to the hands releasing their hold around his waist. Turning his head, searching, he found Bree's eyes through the helmet he gave her staring wide with shock right into his. And his right hand whipped around just right to envelop hers and pull hard while his left hand squeezed the brake handle hard enough to snap it had it been locked.

Narrowly avoiding a collision, Julian leaned to the right and pitched the nose of his snowmobile accordingly to actually lift the left end up from the angle of his turn and kicked even more snow into Thao and his predicament.

Thao had to stop to pull Bree back onto his ride, which left him completely open to the pursuing Vipers. But Julian's turn was not just to avoid them, but a course alteration that led him to another cove that hopefully opened up to a series of valleys to their right. Ahead, Thao had only a short distance left to reach the safety of the hills, but Julian's path had quite a bit of open space left, which led the Viper pursuers to make him their primary target as they had a better chance of hitting him with more time.

After securing Bree, he opened the throttle again to notice the _Battle Cobras_ still following him. But he knew they were still out of range. He could see by their appearance that they were the Prime configuration with the large pulse lasers. Having a more limited range than the standard ER lasers, he forced himself to calm his breathing while a new flash of light caught his attention from behind.

While the _Ice Ferret_ pushed its limits as far as speed was concerned in pursuit of Julian, the _Hankyu_ ignited its jump jets in an attempt to utilize a new angle of interception. And it partially worked, having it close the distance immensely with its target as Julian was hesitant to veer in the other direction and lead himself right into the _Ice Ferret's_ line of fire.

But Thao couldn't keep observing for long. He had his own high rate of speed to worry about when he silently rejoiced at finally crossing the valley opening threshold. Slowing his speed to safely observe his new surroundings, he found to his right a path that could lead him to a superior spotting position while still allowing him to move forward away from the incoming forces.

Resetting his bearing, he took his right hand from the handlebars and grabbed Bree's hands clasped around his waist. He squeezed them in a gesture to tell her that he was on top of things and that he needed her to stay with him through this so he could help her out later. She rested her head on his shoulder in response, putting his mind at ease and allowing him to navigate up the slope until he found a good spot to overlook the plain behind them.

Slowing down to a halt in its own right calmed the world around them, seeing the _Battle Cobras_ still far out of range and therefore not an immediate threat. But Thao was more concerned with Julian's predicament, which had gotten exponentially worse.

The cove he found was nearly pinched shut at the end, forcing him to aim for a very specific spot to exit. This let the _Hankyu_ that jumped over the hill dividing the cove from the plain behind to get a bead on him right quick.

He wanted to yell out to him, tell him to watch out. He wanted to let Julian know the exact moment the 'mech fired so he could veer out of the way. But he knew his voice would not make it over there, that it would weaken and die out in the impossibly vast expanse of frozen air between them.

Julian did his thing, veering as much as space would allow and still have him heading in the direction needed to make the exit. But it just wasn't enough. His vehicle needed to stay straight enough to pass through the narrow opening, which it did. But it was straight long enough for the _Hankyu's_ LRM launchers to lock onto him. And in a precision shot, a volley of missiles launched out of each of the 'mech's missile racks and surged forward through the opening, past him and right into his drive path beyond.

The explosions ahead engulfed him in a wash of yellow fire and white snow. Thao knew it was far away, but he saw with exceptional clarity the snowmobile lift from the ground riding the wave of snow caused by the first warhead and Julian's body flailing helplessly through the air as the entire area seemed to explode and powder up debris.

It took a few moments for the snow that didn't evaporate in the flash to settle, and Thao had to wait for the breeze to clear the area so he could see the body of his best friend with his own eyes.

And those extra few moments were all it took for the incoming _Battle Cobras_ to break his concentration with several laser shots dangerously close to his position. One of them hit the slope below and sent snow barreling down the side while another shook the rock foundation under him and literally juggled his brain back into the situation at hand.

Not wanting to miss his chance to see Julian rise from the ashes like he always seems to do, he just quickly darted his eyes to meet the sight of the two Viper 'mechs approaching. And they were so much closer than he realized that before his head could even snap back forward to verify his drive path was clear, he opened the throttle back up and avoided what would have been a direct hit from the first 'mech's follow up shot.

The pulse lasers strobed across the wall behind him as he pulled away, now heading down the opposite side of the hill and toward the Iron Raptor like he should have been the whole time, having that large piece of cover separate them indefinitely.

With the roaring of his vehicle's engine being the only sound to work its way through his ears, he felt a new surge of anger. First they tried to take Bree from him, relegating her to a slow, honorless death fitting for a lame dog. Then they took Julian from him, the finest warrior he could have possibly asked to serve with.

With a new expression of rage etching itself across his face, he resolved at that very moment to get revenge. With his unit fragmented and its very honor in question, he swore then and there that his priority was that of the lives of his men, and Kerensky help whatever poor soul found itself in his sights.

* * *

The combat engineers finished their launch pads and prefabricated runway quick enough to deploy the ASF refueling equipment and tech crews before Sascha's pilots made it back from Renatia. But with the impending storm, Kael Pershaw ordered all the craft to be craned back into the dropship proper for protection from the elements.

A command trailer was set up near the Iron Raptor along with another two units to give him a venue for debriefing and a little extra space for his warriors and crew to get away from the cramped confines of the dropship corridors without having to brave the cold outside. It wasn't enough for everyone, but whoever stayed behind could enjoy the space left by the absence of the others, so everyone had at least a few hours of legroom to enjoy.

Gregors and the rest of the Emerald Talon assault team minus two arrived unharmed a good time after their initial transmission. Night was falling on this side of Marshall, and it looked to be a cold one. Very cold.

The group was greeted by their fellow warriors while some got replacement bandages in the Iron Raptor's sick bay. It was decided to have Mechwarrior Erik commandeer the late Jackal's _Cougar_ and take his place in Bravo Star.

Kael had privately berated Star Captain Gregors for allowing Thao and Julian to disobey his orders and wander into the countryside to not be heard from again. While he knows there is nothing Gregors could have done physically to stop them, especially with him still suffering from his wound on the Emerald Talon, it was especially unnerving for Thao to ditch out like this on a mission of this magnitude.

But Gregors took it in stride. He understood the frustrations his Star Colonel was having to deal with, and applauded his professionalism in dealing with things the way he has. Hell, he was even in a 'mech again.

Sascha was glad to see him as well, being the abnormally carefree individual he was. The 32nd Aerospace Support Trinary was in great shape considering. Their decisive victory over the Viper's air force was a tremendous morale booster, and Gregors decided that he would rather spend the evening in the company of his optimistic pilots instead of the command staff.

Hours passed as the clouds finally settled in to seemingly crush the region. The resulting snowfall came quickly, near instantly filling the space between the ground and the clouds themselves. But Kael never left his command trailer. He just stayed up, isolated, going over files, videos, and messages he received over the past month. He was trying to solve a puzzle with which he didn't even know how many pieces were involved, but he did so diligently, not missing a beat.

And eventually, well after he had moved on from the work he did rewriting the roster to account for the unit's Star Captain's absence, he got word from the dropship. A single snowmobile made its way over some of the worse terrain to the northwest. Elementals were deployed to make sure it wasn't hostile, though they all hoped it was who they thought it was.

Kael didn't even leave his trailer after that. He just continued compiling his information with new planetary resources, including maps of Renatia and his Intel on the components of the Viper forces on planet, which included eight clusters. And when he finished placing the enemy units on his strategic maps for planning purposes, Thao opened the door to expose the heavy, cold air outside.

His silhouette was dark compared to the thick gray world falling behind him. With the clouds so thick and no local light source, the snow looked dark, almost like ash.

He entered and closed the door quickly, standing at attention and giving Kael the expected reporting statement. "Sir, Star Captain Thao Prentice reports!"

"At ease," Kael moaned out. He was still looking at the map he made, finally turning to meet Thao when he was satisfied all he could do now with it was done. "You have some explaining to do."

"Aff."

Kael paced around the display table as best he could, his nearly entire prosthetic leg dragging behind like it always did, though it never affected his posture. "First off, how is Star Commander Bree?"

"Alive, and recovering in the medical bay. She had some frostbite and symptoms of minor hypothermia, but those are easy to treat. She apparently sustained a serious head injury in her ejection, which is being analyzed right now."

"Will she be battle-ready by morning?"

"I do not think so. She has trouble maintaining consciousness, along with unstable balance and an erratic attention span. I have no doubt she will make a full recovery given time at a proper medical facility."

Kael groaned internally. "And what about Star Captain Julian Buhallin?"

Thao remained silent for a moment, contemplating his answer, "Assumed KIA."

Then Kael closed his eyes and cursed the heavens. All of his best men were not making it as far as he needed to get them through this. "Expect to be formally reprimanded when we return to Strana Mechty. When I give an order, I expect you to follow it. Now Julian is dead and we are short another pilot."

Thao just dipped his head in understanding. "Aff."

Shaking his own head in obvious disapproval, Kael paced a little more, changing his tone to a more productive one. "We have adequate resources to hold out here, but we are now unwanted guests in enemy territory. It is just a matter of time before they come for us. If we get overrun, we need to ditch our equipment and make way to Renatia."

"Sir, what is there?"

"The source of all this headache: Steel Viper Loremaster and Clan Watch Commanding Officer Arthur Stoklas. He is the only one I have been able to find information on suggesting a hand in the planning and execution of the Emerald Talon siege and the tampering of the Renatia trial grounds."

Thao entered the trailer proper now, curious, "I heard about that. Buildings were rigged with charges to blow? Did the Viper Fusilers set them off?"

"Neg. I do not think the Fusilers knew. They reacted the same as we did to the explosives. I think Arthur has been working behind his clan's back to set them up for something big."

Thao studied the map Kael had put together. "If they did not know about it, why would he go through the trouble of setting them up at all?"

"I do not think the trap was set for them."

"For someone else then?"

Kael walked over to his computer terminal, "I think Arthur Stoklas is setting up shop in Renatia. If he did help plan all this, then we may not have seen the entire scope of the Viper offensive yet. We need to stop it before it can get any worse. I need you rested for tomorrow."

"Sir, if you do not mind, I have a few questions."

"I have said all I need. You are dismissed, Star Captain."

Thao stopped, started to turn toward the door, and then turned back to Kael, "What is all this about?"

Kael remained silent as he read through data at his terminal.

"I asked you a question," Thao approached his commander.

"I would remind the Star Captain with whom he is addressing…"

Then Thao slammed his fist into the display table, "I am addressing the head of a disgraced unit whose field leader is ready to walk out on unless he gets some answers. Now."

"Do you really want to go this route? Have I ever let you down before? There are some things better left until later to de--"

"My men do not have until later! We are dying out there, one by one! It is my _responsibility_ to ensure their safety. It is about time you trusted me to deal with whatever it is you have to say."

Then Kael stood, "Look at you! Look at how bent out of shape you are from _not_ knowing. Do you honestly think you can lead the Nighthawks now, enraged and ready to blow at any moment? You need to step back and re-evaluate yourself. Set Bree aside, set Julian aside. These _men_ of yours are all that stand in the way between the subversive dismantling of our clan and its chance at regaining ground in a war that has engulfed _half_ the Kerensky Cluster! This is not the time to act like some emotional, train-wreck freeborn teenager. Trust my judgment, of all the times…"

Thao had never heard Kael speak like this. Sure, he was brash, but he was asking, almost pleading for Thao to work with him on this instead of demanding obedience. This was indeed the endgame. He had ridden the momentum of war all the way up to this point, and now saw what kind of toll it was taking on the man he thought was invincible. What Kael Pershaw saw ahead must have shaken him, must've made him ask questions about himself as well. While Thao thought of Kael as his mentor, he never once thought Kael thought of him as his protégé. The display of emotion did reset him.

"Aff. I trust your judgment. I was… out of line."

Thao waited a moment for a response, and never got one. He turned to leave like he was ordered to moments ago when Kael spoke up, "Arthur may have used someone to help him set the clan up. Someone with influence, and something to gain."

"Dev…" The name reverberated off his lips like a dying man would curse the devil.

"Aff. Star Colonel Dev Iler spent over two years investigating the Nighthawks, compiling a case against us. He looked up naval records, deployment patterns, interviewed or inspected units we have had contact with. He may have even been to Atlantis."

"But why?" Thao asked. "Why does he have it in for us?"

"As far as I can tell, it was a case powerful enough to lure every bloodnamed warrior in the homeworlds to Strana Mechty."

"Leaving countless units without their commander."

"Exactly." Kael sat in his chair and slouched, which was the first time Thao ever saw him do that as well.

Thao stayed silent, his own thoughts rolling through his head. Kael just continued, "Which leads me to believe that it may not be us specifically he set out to incriminate, but anything to help the Viper offensive along."

"Why would he want us overran by the Vipers?"

"I have been trying to piece that together. The only alternative to him wanting our clan in such a predicament is him protecting himself. People do strange things in the name of self preservation. Maybe Arthur found something Dev did not want others to know."

And a long pause followed, with Kael already knowing what was to be said next, and Thao just processed the words, the act of admitting it being much more difficult than he thought, "He made me kill my own unit, hunt them down, like an executioner."

Kael remained quiet, letting Thao get it out of his system.

"Marshall, 3067. My first mission under Star Colonel Iler. I helped wipe out a trinary of Steel Viper units trespassing in our territory who refused to identify themselves." Thao kept speaking, his tone low and serious, "I tried to reach the enemy Star Captain, but there was no reply. And then I got word that the commander of Alpha Trinary failed, and it was my turn to go in there and finish the job."

Thao just smiled a frustrated gesture of disapproval, "I was completely in the zone. Every move I counted in advance. Every tactic I countered. The entire unit, gone. I was hailed by my commander, and the rest of my time here was a breeze. I was so euphoric about the victory that I never questioned the incident itself."

"You did not know it was a Falcon unit. How could you?"

"I could have taken extra recon time to identify the unit markings, the insignias. I know it was snowing and the fighting was in mountain passes making it difficult to do that, but…"

Kael started to move this in a productive direction, "He was hiding something. That is the only reason any commander would want to get rid of an element of his unit barring incompetence."

"It does not matter. I did it. The blood is on my hands. Is it wrong to accept that? Victory, it was mine. I won. When did it matter who the target was? Is that not what the clan wants me to think?"

"You are confusing yourself. This is not about the clan, or being a warrior. That is all on the surface."

"Yeah, the surface. But now who am I? What if I do not like who I have become?"

"Now _that_ is different. That is where selfishness gets in the way of your duty. The clans hold warriors in the highest regard, supposedly the most important element of their existence. But truthfully, warriors are not whole people. Most of their lives, the good ones, are dedicated to serving, following their orders. We are assets to be utilized by the clan, to uphold its ideals. We, as people, do not matter."

"You are wrong." Thao closed his eyes in recollection of the last few days. "We are people. We can be betrayed and dishonored. What kind of ideals are worth upholding if those who do it are not even human anymore?"

"Like Julian?"

"What?"

"Where is his emotion? What about his sacrifice? Is that not ideal? Is he not human?"

He got him there. Thao never really thought about that, how one performed his duty reflected the humanity of the ideals they were trying to espouse. It was totally backwards, but then again, what was really what it was supposed to be anymore?

"Fine. I suck it up and move on. I kill any Steel Viper that gets near here. And what then? Am I no different than some periphery terrorist with a few 'mechs?"

Kael approached slowly, "I will only say this once. Men have conspired to start a war that will not only kill countless people, but discredit the honor built from centuries of good people doing the right thing the right way. Here, in this God forsaken snowstorm in the middle of nowhere is a single dropship and command center, housing a combat experienced unit its own clan wants to destroy.

"But underneath it all, beyond the politics and ignorance, what we have is a single group of people making its stand against the malevolence only it knows exists. This is not about Jade Falcon and Steel Viper. This is about us doing something, or doing nothing. Could you honestly forgive yourself for not pushing with every ounce of your being to punish those that kill for the sake of power?"

"No."

"Then you have no choice. We are on our own. Knowledge brings you no allies. But this is the path we have chosen. Whatever you did in the past matters not. The only thing that matters now is if you can push forward from here.

"Soon, this war will take shape, and the clan will buckle under the sudden weight of all that is happening to it. I have no doubt it will survive, but it is our job to protect it against this very kind of attack and minimize the damage. At least _we_ can go out with a bang."

Kael moved past Thao toward the door to leave. Upon passing, he put his hand on Thao's shoulder with a parting comment, "Besides, I want to find out if a secret worth killing for is a secret worth dying for."

After Kael closed the door behind him, Thao took a seat. Alone, with the absurd nature of hopelessness in front of him, he asked himself why he couldn't be afforded the clear, black and white path facing all other clan warriors. Target, friend, place, time, objective.

But then he remembered hunting down his own unit on this very planet. Suddenly, that world of black and white seemed very uninviting. It just looked like there was no way out of this bleak confusion. What was what?

The only thing that lifted the weight of obscurity from his chest was knowing who he should be. In battle, no matter who the guy was on the other end of his PPCs, it was his job to win. The details of it all were before and after, but he lived for the battle itself.

Regret, self condemnation, justification, and indifference cycled through his head repeatedly until he was lost in a tired haze in his chair. _It would be nice to just dump all emotion at the flick of a switch,_ he thought. Though the only person he knew that could do that met his fate hours ago saving his life.

_What would Julian do if Death ever came for him?_ He thought of Death as an entity, confronting Julian to lead him away from here. _He would probably challenge him to a trial of refusal. Stubborn surat,_ he thought, laughing inside until he finally dozed off. The thought of his death was something he knew he would have to deal with at a later time, when he could be proud of himself again and justify his friend's sacrifice.

* * *

Far away, deeper in the outer mountain ranges of the southern continent on Marshall, the snow fell like heaven itself burnt to ash and was covering the world. Near an entrance to a cave system more complex than any other in the Kerensky Cluster, a lone man braved the wind and blinding snow to suddenly feel the heat of eyes around him.

All around eight men rose from the snow holding sub-machineguns, all pointed at him with flashlights on and safeties off. If anyone spoke it would have been absorbed by the snow well before it reached any other's ears. No. No words were needed. This was dangerous territory, filled with ghosts that by every right didn't exist anymore.

But the man stood tall, and looked right into the ghost in front of him who wasn't holding a gun. Though surrounded by hostiles, he slowly removed his helmet and jacket, then his shirt. He extended his arms and exposed himself in some of the worst conditions these men had ever seen here. Deep bruises covered his surface, showing blobs of purple and black to reflect the last few days of combat. Several cuts made their way across random areas, too fresh to be mistaken with the deeper scars so unavoidably visible even through snowfall like this.

And in a show of strength to prove he was unarmed, he spun slowly, letting all see the length he would go through to fulfill whatever goal this spirit set out to achieve.

The man ahead of him studied the figure for a moment, deciding whether he was crazy or fanatical. In the end, it mattered not. Julian Buhallin came here for a reason, and the man would be damned if he did not hear it.

One by one the flashlights turned off, darkening the snow again to a deep gray and enshrouding them in the thick cloak of ignorance.

Not a man in that field should be alive right now, and the world's ability to accept that convenient lie will have to deal with those consequences soon enough.


	7. Chapter Six: Refusal

**CHAPTER SIX: REFUSAL**

The night was not particularly kind to Gretchen Talasko, who found it difficult to sleep. It was entirely common for her to feel some passive anxiety over an upcoming battle, but this was completely out of her realm of experience.

She was on a new planet with a foreign unit in a different clan that was convicted of mass murder on a planetary scale. It was rife with emotional, conflicting, and most un-warrior-like personalities that were brought together from a myriad of backgrounds and military careers. But, despite the urge of most people to lash out at their trothkin for betraying them like they had, this group pushed on in a suicidal situation that assured absolutely no honor and certainly no redemption.

Kael Pershaw had not told her his reasons for retreating Renatia so quickly, though her own tactical experience told her that the chances of them winning that battle were nonexistent. He also didn't tell her what he was up most of the night researching in his command trailer, as he kept a closed door policy in place the whole time.

But with Thao Prentice returning with the star commander thought lost earlier, the mood looked to have a momentary lift.

Being stuck in this dropship because of the weather outside did not help her predicament. She knew no one, and while she wasn't treated poorly by anyone onboard, this group seemed so tight-knit that it was difficult to be included in any conversation or activity. So she made way to a point of interest that would kill some time and maybe inspire her a bit, albeit in an unconventional way.

The Nighthawks seemed to share bunks onboard, but all the rooms were empty right now. She made her way into Julian's room and instantly identified his space. With the other bunks showing signs of usage, his was still in place like the techs would have prepped it before launch. She could tell no one was using it, and thought to confirm her thinking by opening the locker next to the bunk itself.

Inside were uniforms and books. An entire shelf of books filled the uppermost portion of the locker. She pulled one out and ran her fingers over the cover to feel the raised title characters. She of course noticed it was written in some Asian language and no English was found on the cover or inside.

She thumbed through some pages, finding all the writing to be vertical and the text lacking any pictures. She was so engrossed that the female voice addressing her from behind lightly startled her, though only her eyes showed it. "Is it customary for Star Adder commanders to randomly inspect their unit's personal items during a deployment?"

Gretchen turned around to see Bree leaning against the doorframe, smiling with the remark that was surprisingly not condescending but more cordial in delivery. "Star Commander Bree. I see you are doing well. How do you feel?"

Bree, having a bandage around her head and a sling cradling her left arm, entered the room looking at the book in Gretchen's hands. "Better. Just the equipment here took care of the cold exposure, along with MRIs and steroid injections for the head trauma."

"Good. It looked pretty bad when you came in. I am glad you are up and running so soon." Gretchen looked back down at the book she was holding, "And no, I tend not to pry into the quarters of my unit. But I guess in his case, I could not resist."

Bree walked up beside the Adder warrior, "Julian has a way of doing that to people. How someone so quiet can raise so many questions is an enigma in itself."

"Aff. And stuff like this just adds to it."

"Go Rin No Sho?"

Gretchen just shrugged her shoulders now, again feeling a pang of inferiority. "You can read it too?"

"The Book of Five Rings: it is Japanese. And yes, I can read some, but not much. I know enough to read street signs and military insignias. But Julian is fluent in it."

"And this guy?" Gretchen pointed to the picture of the figure on the cover.

"Miyamoto Musashi? He was the most famous swordsman of ancient Japan, back on Terra in the 17th century. Heh, Julian was more a fan of Muso Gonnosuke, but he never wrote any books."

"Muso who?"

"Never mind," Bree replied shaking her head. Changing notes, "It is strange having a warrior from another clan accompany us, let alone fight with us. You did real well out there. Even I was impressed."

"No offense, but impressing a Star Commander is beneath my concern."

Bree acknowledged the remark with a humble nod showing she was reminded she was talking to a star colonel.

Gretchen then followed up to lighten any unintended awkwardness, "But thank you. But this thing has really put me in a bad spot."

"How so?"

"Well, Julian saved my life on Huntress. And after he helped us take out that nuke, I felt obligated to repay him."

Bree nodded again, this time in agreement. Every clan warrior understands their duty to repay another when he goes out of his way to help them, either in spite of the mission objectives or putting themselves at risk in the process.

"But joining you here, now," Gretchen continued, "pretty much doomed me to the upcoming battle as my last. You see, your unit is declared dezgra, and if I fight alongside you I am too considered unworthy of warrior status, especially in my own clan since I am doing this voluntarily. But if I walk away now, I abandon my unit, even if it is a temporary one in its time of need and fail to fulfill my vow of indebtedness. So either way my career is over or I take a hit."

Bree was silent for a while, understanding the predicament but not knowing anything to say to make it any different. After a lengthened silence, Gretchen asked, "How do you do it?"

"Do what?"

"This. Even if you manage to defend yourselves for the time being, there is no going back and being redeemed. If you die here, it will be for not. Are you not angry about this whole thing?"

Bree smiled, "Angry… maybe. But anger gets one only further into trouble." She sighed, "Someone has to do this. All our missions, there is a purpose, a reason they _need_ to be done. We just stick together and trust each other. We are used to being alone I guess." Then she laughed, "What did you expect when signing over to us? Was Huntress not enough to convince you we were the stuff fairy tales were made of?"

Gretchen looked off into the small bookshelf next to Julian's bunk. Most every warrior in the clans had all their personal reading material, being mostly tech manuals and military doctrine overviews electronically stored in vid-readers. The idea of hulking around a book collection was unfathomable.

There were more books in Japanese, and some in what looked like Greek and even an art book having nothing to do with war. While it was not what she expected to find specifically, it was definitely as interesting as she had hoped. Looking within herself to reply, "Maybe I was looking for something different… something not so robotic and repetitive. Something where I did not know the ending and could lose myself for a time."

Bree turned to leave, "Well, you found it. I am sorry for you getting pulled into our mess. But a little part of you has to be enjoying itself. Every war has casualties. Good warriors do not mind being that as long as they take the enemy down with them, make them hurt. I would imagine you understand this."

"Oh," Gretchen replied with a smile, "I fully intend to make the enemy hurt. You can count on that."

Bree turned one final time before leaving entirely, "Star Captain Thao Prentice has called a unit brief in the command trailer at 0900 hours. He wanted you to attend. So that gives you about ten minutes to look around before we are back to business."

Then she left Gretchen to reflect upon their short conversation. Julian may have saved her, and from what she heard he fell saving Bree as well. It was unfortunate though. Gretchen never got a chance to talk to Julian since her arrival.

But if was true he was gone, she would honor his sacrifice in the best way she knew how. After all, Bree was right. She was having fun in a twisted, masochistic way.

* * *

The command trailer was pretty stuffy with all the mechwarriors, pilots, and elemental point leaders crammed in it. Of course there were not enough seats, so everyone sat on the desks, tables, stood, or kneeled wherever they could. Gretchen entered to find the brief beginning and was offered an empty seat next to Thao in the middle with Kael and the Star Commanders. Maybe it was her rank being respected, but she felt a little awkward staring at the faces of an entire unit she barely knew. She just kept her back straight and listened.

"Charlie Wing has reported an enemy unit grouping up south of Renatia. It sent scout 'mechs toward us with an aerospace trinary ahead for what looks like a sweeping mission." He had a holographic display up in the center of the trailer with a flat-screen monitor in the front showing the terrain around them for over 200 kilometers. The areas he referred to illuminated as he spoke, as well as unit representative markers placed at the specified locations.

"Their air power has yet to challenge ours, and I ordered Charlie Wing to hold back and avoid engagement until we can better assess what route they will take through the hills. The hike will be long if they maintain formation, moving only as fast as their slowest assault 'mechs. This gives us plenty of time to set up a defensive. Star Captain?"

Star Captain Gregors stood and continued the brief, "The 32nd Aerospace Support Trinary will be on standby until needed. We do our aerial recon and head east to lure their aerospace forces away. I have a little plan for them… After that we park it here and maintain our resources so when we get the call from the front lines, we can hit hard and upset their initiative, hopefully permanently. The combat engineers have assembled everything we need here, including refueling ports, runways, and crisis centers for crash landings. Response teams are also on standby if one of us goes down and cannot be retrieved with our forward units. Star Commander Gent will be replaced with Pilot Arianna, who will receive a field promotion to Star 

Commander for the remainder of this campaign. She will run Bravo Wing at its current strength."

Then he sat down and let Thao continue, "I know you would rather be overhead the moment the bullets fly, but with them outnumbering us two to one, I need every trick I can get. Holding you back as a surprise will in turn give you a greater impact, tactically speaking." Finished with explaining himself to any confused pilots, he addressed the rest of everyone here, "Ambush points will be scouted out by Bravo Star here, here, and here. I want actual Intel on the ground before assigning positions, which means when you get the word, you deploy _fast _to make up for lost time.

"For deployment purposes, Star Colonel Kael Pershaw will be assigned to Alpha Star, though he is obviously free to direct command input to any unit on the field. Star Commander Marx will lead his unit at full-strength while Mechwarrior Erik takes the _Cougar_ in Bravo. Star Captain Julian's _Mad Dog_ is being stripped down for parts so we can add to our cache for quick field repairs. Any questions?"

Mechwarrior Lana raised her hand, "What about Star Commander Bree? Will she not take the _Mad Dog_?"

"Star Commander Bree has not been cleared for combat. Her head injury… was substantial enough to raise concern about her reliability over such a sustained period in the field."

The room was silent as Star Commander Bree stood and addressed her troops, "Mechwarriors, my condition… I still have black-outs, and my balance is in question at any given moment. This can conflict with my neurohelmet interface…" She lowered her head with a ping of shame having to admit it, "It would not be right for me to lead you now, when I can go at a moment's notice."

Then she lifted her head with a more positive expression on her face, "But in my stead, Star Colonel Gretchen Talasko will head the unit. Her command experience outweighs any available substitutes. Yes, she is a Star Colonel, but her command will fall under Star Captain Thao Prentice's. Regardless, her rank and position will be respected for what it is. Is this understood?"

The news was fairly astonishing. In their most dire of circumstances, a warrior from not only outside their unit, but another _clan_ would be taking over the star. Thao almost had his doubts as to how the troops would react, as did Bree. But those doubts were laid to rest when one of the troops responded with a reassuring, "Aff!"

Then another.

And finally, Mechwarrior Erik, "She fights well. Damn well. Lead the way, Star Colonel."

Gretchen was floored, though her face didn't show it. The trust bestowed upon her completely lifted her from the trench she was lying in and planted her right in the middle of this in the best possible way. The support from the unit helped exponentially, giving her some amount of pride and drive to succeed beyond that she previously had. She nodded to Mechwarrior Erik in approval and reciprocation. Then, if anyone was looking, they would have noticed a small lift in the corner of her mouth signifying a hidden smile that exuded acceptance.

"Star Commander Bree," Kael added, "will act as a spotter for our support wing. She _will_ be with us on the ground."

The news of that sat well with her star, knowing that she will still contribute. It only felt right.

Then Thao resumed, "We cannot go around them. We have to hit hard, hit fast, and use the 'controlled chaos' to our advantage. The Steel Viper unit needs to have its head spinning, so whatever reports make it back to the Renatia base are useless by the time they are acknowledged. The goal is to take their entire force out and move into Renatia after they send response units. It is imperative that we get into the city and secure our objective, which is more than likely in this area." A grid map of Renatia filled the displays and a corner of it blinked in red to signify what he was talking about.

Then Thao verbally acknowledged Sascha raising his hand, "Star Commander?"

Staring slowly with a face that told Thao that he may not like what he hears, Sascha started, "Sir… if we are to find our clan waiting for us after this is done, are we sure we want to go about this that way?

"I mean, even if we pound the Vipers into dust, if we do it dishonorably, what difference does it make in the long run… sir?"

Instead of berating the young freeborn who publicly questioned the logic behind his hard-thought strategy, Thao smiled and replied, "The Emerald Talon was our trial of refusal. We are not to be executed by the clan after all is said and done. And yes, Sascha, if we go about this in the way planned, after already retreating before, the odds of us regaining our active status will be stacked against us, high.

"But right now we are dezgra. Losing the trial we were so suddenly thrust into and running officially makes us bandits in enemy territory. Beating them straight up using zell is only an option if they acknowledge us as an honorable unit deserving of it. Good luck convincing them _that_. But that is not an option anyway, because it draws us out when we really need to get to the city and hit them from behind. If we do it the official way, we would have to challenge them back for the city, which is unacceptable due to the amount of time it takes. So we need to do this unofficially."

"What is in Renatia?"

Thao responded to Sascha, who was listening intently, "Our redemption."

The room stared intently at him as he elaborated, "This unit was formed to respond to the underhanded tactics of the Inner Sphere intelligence communities. The realities of war have put us in several bad situations, situations I wish none of my trothkin have to face. We fight this dirty war so that our clan can stay pure, so it can continue its honorable traditions and be the savior the Inner Sphere needs when it succeeds. If we allow it to sink into that dark hole of treachery, then we are no better than the governments that tore the Star League apart.

"Right now though, our greatest enemy is not the Inner Sphere, but another clan. Certain members of Clan Steel Viper have adopted this kind of warfare, and are waging it on our unsuspecting ranks as I speak. Enclaves across the Kerensky Cluster are either under attack or now under Viper control already. Our leaders were rushed away from their men right before they were needed most, and our flagship was taken from beneath our talons with us barely knowing it. Khan Pryde even had to defend our holdings on Strana Mechty, holdings Nicholas Kerensky himself gave to each of the clans equally to signify our common heritage.

"This is war at its purest. The Falcon's heart, mind, and body are being assailed at once. It is confused, and on its heels."

The room remained silent as he started to move, pacing a little to get the blood flowing, "And then there are us: a unit apparently not worthy of its ranks because the average warrior cannot grasp the necessity of understanding this type of warfare. His solution is safcon, and zellbrigen. While these give us the moral high ground, ignorance is no better than suicide in the grand scheme of things. We are that sliver of knowledge that holds our clan in place, keeping it from sliding into history as a failed experiment.

"Right now, the man responsible for uprooting centuries of tradition against us is hiding in Renatia, pulling the strings of subordinates and commanders alike. Only we know this. No one else would believe us anyway. And, because of our charge to defend our clan against this very type of war, we must forget the ignorance we so helped to protect in our trothkin and set fire to those that would dare defile the homeworlds like this. We go forth and remove this cancer from the clans, and we fulfill our purpose. Dirty? Yes. For the greater good? Hell yes!"

The room uproared in a wave of sonic enthusiasm that would send chills down the back of a god.

* * *

Space heater technology had made little advances in the last few hundred years. Luckily, it didn't need to. Colonizing countless frozen worlds refined so many breakthrough models through history that even the black market ones used in these caves were more than enough to make the dark, wet confines entirely pleasant compared to the tundra outside.

Julian needed a warm place to thaw after hiking an unthinkable distance from the site of his snowmobile exploding to the cave complex Kael gave him coordinates for at the depot. Kael Pershaw, it would seem, knew much, much more about this entire situation than he was letting on. But he was always sure not to release information that could harm his troops before he knew it was accurate, which is where Julian always filled in the gaps.

The place itself was impressive. A small medical tent was set up inside one of the main caverns, along with makeshift eating and sleeping areas. Security posts were established, and there was a variety of equipment deployed around, like portable water treatment modules and radio scanners.

He found himself now sitting at a table across from the leader of this group of bandits, a man in his late twenties to early thirties sporting a beard and a black thermal skull cap. His eyes were generally shifting, which is normal for one constantly on the move, whose survival depends entirely on his observation of surroundings. A little shorter than Julian would have thought after viewing his codex earlier, the man conversed with the others almost as an equal, though was obviously in a position of authority.

"Nice place you have here," Julian began, setting the tone of the coming conversation.

"Yeah, cozy." Then the leader leaned in closer, "So, aside from the fact that you obviously made it here on foot through a storm I would not even negotiate in an armored convoy looking like you lost a fight with a dump truck, I need to know _why_ you are here."

"Fair enough." Julian leaned back, still wrapped in his heated blanket exuding a complete look of comfort despite being in a dark caste fortification deep in enemy territory. "I see you have scanners. Useful for smuggling I would imagine. Always tracking the authorities to know how to avoid them?"

"I like to be well informed of my surroundings."

Julian nodded. "My commander sent a message to some contacts here to track you down. It looks like they came through."

"They did. Your clan has not even acknowledged my existence for years until three days ago. You understand how this concerns us. But I will cut to the chase. Since our survival requires the outside world's indifference, I am low on reasons to let you leave here alive."

Julian looked around some more, breaking eye contact with a man that tried to intimidate him. The gesture alone showed his confidence he would leave here alive. "You are not a murderer."

"Do not think you know me, _warrior_." The last word was venomous in its tone. "Who is your commander, and what are we doing here?"

"Star Colonel Kael Pershaw, clan Loremaster and head of the Jade Falcon Watch. He wanted me to find _you_, Jacob."

Jacob's face showed his sudden confusion and surprise. Julian even knew his name. No one outside his group knew his name. And the implication of Kael Pershaw taking an interest in him raised more questions than he could process at the moment.

"It has been… a long time since anyone outside this group has called me that. How do you know?"

"It seems we have a common enemy. He started something that cannot be allowed to finish. And you may know something to help us bring him down."

"Dev Iler…" Just the sound of the words escaping Jacob's mouth told of years of building hatred. And this was not a rival kind of hatred, but the kind that tears people apart from the inside, eventually manifesting to effect the world around them like a plague if not kept in check. "He is here, you know."

"What?"

"On planet. He dropped in sixteen hours ago to reinforce the defenders at New Sydney."

"Interesting…" Julian's mind wondered a moment before refocusing on Jacob, "And you stayed here?"

"Yeah. I want nothing more than to rip that man's throat out and feed it to him through the same opening. But…"

"But…"

"If someone went through the trouble of tracking me down, then I know something big is going on. Maybe I wanted to find out how big before running off to kill him."

"Thank you for that load of confidence."

Then Jacob's eyes narrowed, "I am taking a gamble with you. I even let you rest instead of interrogating you on the spot.

"And I thank you for that--"

"The other men thought you were just a scout, bringing the rest here to finish what he started; to finish us off, so he could keep his dirty little secret." The look of disgust was unmistakable on his face, and Julian knew that this exchange just leapt to a whole new level. "So right now, you tell me why I should listen to what you have to say."

Julian thought hard about his response. He needed to plan this one out, regain control of the conversation and steer Jacob to where he needed him to go. "You try to speak as if you are not clan. Like it has betrayed you so well that you reject the very notion of honor."

"What evidence do I have that honor exists? That it is not a fabrication, a control method to keep the _warriors_ in line?"

"Me." He let that sink in for a moment. "I _am_ a murderer. I have stolen, killed, and sacrificed my own life for my clan. All in the hopes that this idea of honor is real."

"And you still call yourself a warrior then?"

"What else would you call one that braved that storm on foot, behind enemy lines to seek the company of bandits?"

"Behind enemy lines? You are not Jade Falcon?"

"Oh, I am. The Steel Vipers own this region now. They probably own a lot more than we know. Dev helped start a war and may have set the entire clan up for failure."

"Why does that not surprise me?"

"Because you know why he tried to kill you."

"Yeah. Tried."

"And you survived? He let you go?"

The sour look of disgust never left his face as he spoke, "I was buried under several meters of compacted snow. My men were sealed in these caves, and they dug me out. It took four hours just to get to the cockpit."

"And a lot longer to heal I would assume."

Jacob looked at Julian and for the first time actually _saw_ him. He said he sacrificed his life before, and he didn't know what that meant, he said it in a way that told him he was telling the truth. Jacob thought that no one could understand the tribulations he went through just trying to survive that final conflict here over five years ago, let alone grasp the horror of it: the betrayal and ordered extermination. But Julian's eyes, once cold and unreadable, showed Jacob that he could understand, that he may have been through worse before. This man was definitely not the enemy.

Jacob stayed silent, collecting his thoughts, deciding what to say, what to delve into. The last few years have been a riptide of events and personal revelations: purging his system of a lifetime of clan influence, rejecting his home, and adapting to a bandit lifestyle. For the first time he recollected it all at once. It was scary how easy it was to access all that memory, and the emotions that came with it.

Then Julian asked the prize question, "What happened to you?"

Jacob inhaled deep to settle himself, then started a story he had not told anyone since it happened. Maybe finally he found a reason to revisit it. Or maybe his lust for revenge was so entrenched in his psyche that it actually gave way to hope.

* * *

The 'mech bay was cold and sterile, having been washed with the approved cleaners the techs use regularly here. All the cleaner in the world could not erase the hint of grease and solder though. But the most apparent observation would be the smell of paint that was thick in the air.

Thao made his way to the last cluster of storage bays containing his new omnimech. Rounding the corner he tilted his head up to appreciate the awe of the _Night Gyr_ as it stretched upward through the access catwalks.

He inhaled, thinking of how Brevan felt every time he rounded the same corner and was greeted by the same machine. The shape of the chassis itself was far removed from the modular appearance of his _Hellbringer_, well, Kael's old _Hellbringer_. With his commander in his previous ride, Thao thought it appropriate to pilot this beast into battle in honor of his best troop's sacrifice not but six and a half months earlier.

Brevan was the finest example of grace on the battlefield, dancing his 'mech around others and firing with such elegance that he made this slower, hulking frame dreadfully beautiful to behold. The paint scheme for the Nighthawks ranged from a matte black to black with deep emerald veins across the surface of its 'mechs. But this time out Kael had the 'techs run a visual scan of the terrain and generate a camouflage pallet that would help hide the units as much as possible.

While it breaks from the tradition of having your 'mechs sport the colors of the unit, proudly displaying its exploits and engraving its image in the historical aspects of a battle, this utilitarian approach worked great for the Nighthawks. Since they were an irregular unit outside the Galaxy organization system, it really did not matter. And since Thao had this upcoming operation completely based on guerilla tactics, it made all the more sense. While modern sensors and telemetry more or less negated any advantage good camouflage offers, at a distance it still obscured some movement, and would prohibit his enemy from visually figuring his force numbers, forcing him to spend the time to verify though the computer.

Thao ran his hand across the smooth surface of the 'mech's leg, feeling the cold metal that housed one of the most powerful combinations of weapons and maneuverability in clan space. But with the weight of the battle ahead, he wanted to 'feel' the 'mech. It would soon be an extension of himself, a tool to be utilized to vanquish his enemies. He needed to absorb its essence in the way only a mechwarrior would understand, and the calm moment of pause was what he needed to accomplish just that.

_Brevan would love this,_ he thought to himself as he imagined how his fallen comrade would handle the excitement of the upcoming struggle. He knew he would have a smile ear to ear all the while.

Thao climbed the ladder up to the cockpit access deck, and lowered himself into the 'mech. A 'tech closed the hatch behind him and he heard the air-tight seal close and hiss off the excess in its joints. The controls were so new looking, arranged in a way that seemed refreshing compared to the traditional _Hellbringer_ he was used to. But it took just moments to familiarize himself with the layout.

* * *

On the other side of the dropship Star Commander Gregors signaled to his tech to start the crane. It slowly lifted his _Visigoth_ from its bay and swung it around to the pre-fabricated surface surrounding the Iron Raptor that connected to the runways.

He sat back in his seat, stretching his arms and seeing the proud warriors before him on the ground assemble in their traditional travel formation, with Thao in the lead. Their paint scheme was brilliantly effective, blending them into the ground and making him wonder if he could see them at all when in flight.

They stood like the white knights of old tales, tall in the snow and evenly spaced from each other. For a dezgra unit who should be dead, it looked damn professional, and the sight made him proud to be a part of it. They were the best he had ever served with, and if he died today defending them, he would consider it the most honorable death imaginable.

Once on the surface he taxied slowly to the flight line, and confirmed on his radar the rest of his trinary following their pre-launch positions. They would go in order of their stars and then later break away to accommodate Thao's plan. It was madness to most, probably all that would have seen it without knowing the man who made it, but Gregors was ever so confident it would send the enemy into a chaotic state of confusion the likes of which it had never seen.

And the thought of that made him smile through the launch. Even through the sudden acceleration he enjoyed the thought, and broke into a laugh as his craft left the confines of the planet's ground and soared into the air.

* * *

Far above Marshall, Star Admiral Adrian Malthus studied the storm system the 32nd Aerospace Support Trinary was flying through. It was fairly far from their point of origin, and moving south by southeast, taking it away from the ground units.

The Emerald Talon had been tracking all the air traffic above that part of the continent for a while now, watching the Falcon craft get close enough to lure the Viper air forces away from their troops and into the storm, and slowing down just enough to maintain their interest.

Several, small engagements were attempted by the Vipers, but the Falcon trinary just kept egging them on. Now, only one star was being tracked by the pursuing Vipers, actually flying _through_ the storm. It looked thick, and any combat or navigation would rely heavily on sensors, which were probably not adapting too well to the electrical irregularities in the storm system itself.

Another screen was an actual feed zoomed in on the top of the storm itself. Skimming the surface of the dense clouds were Star Captain Gregors with his star and another, just far enough away that sensors from the Vipers would not pick them up, but close enough to his own star in the thick embodiment to communicate. The strategy was not entirely understood by Malthus, but it mattered not. He agreed to look after them from orbit when Thao and his crew left, and he planned on doing exactly that.

The long-range sensors aboard the _Nightlord_ warship were enough to track all the air units down there, though they could probably not track themselves being so close to the lightning discharges. He fed his tracking information to Gregors' nav computer and target tracker to give him an extended aerial view of the scenario and make up for the local interference, giving him total control and an invaluable advantage over the incoming Viper force. From up here it was just something to watch, and enjoy.

* * *

From their sniper posts overlooking the enclosure ahead, Mechwarriors Asano and Weston sat quietly, waiting for some kind of activity to spark them to life. They positioned themselves behind a small series of rock embankments on a nearby hillside, which gave them a spot a little closer to the action than the rest of Charlie Star, but set them up perfectly for the ambush Thao had planned.

Small explosions and weapon's activity was used to hopefully lure the Steel Viper forces here, which from the incoming angle looked rather open and easily accessible. Thao even went as far as walking a star in from that direction, making a footprint trail too obvious to miss for any scout units. Truth was, it was a deathtrap. Only one inside or above could see that though, which worked out perfectly. The two mechwarriors took a private joy in playing so dirty. It was so taboo to set other warriors up like this, but because of that, some of the troops were giddy.

"_So, what are you looking at?"_ Asano came over Weston's private comm. channel, trying to pass the time. They had been out here for near two hours with orders not to move. They just pointed their weapons at the entrance to the trap and tried to keep their attention sharp.

"The second rock from the bottom on the left side, with the snow on it that looks like a crescent."

"_Ah, I passed that twenty minutes ago."_

"Then what are you looking at that is so interesting?"

"_Oh, just trying to memorize the right side. Zoomed in on the two stones on top of the ridge."_

"The ones nearly identical?"

"_Aff. They almost look like breasts."_

"Heh. Yeah, like Star Commander Alice's, with one just slightly larger than the other."

"_Wow, I thought I was the only one who noticed that."_

"Neg. Those things are like lighthouses. Like that time she--"

"_Shit. Contact."_

Weston snapped to attention, focusing on the shape emerging from the snowy expanse beyond the rock wall encasing that part of the enclosure. He hit his comm. to Thao, "Star Captain, I have a Steel Viper _Kit Fox_ entering the target area."

Thao instantly replied, _"Acknowledged. Maintain tracking and do not engage until I give the order."_

"Aff. Standing by…"

The _Kit Fox_ entered and headed to its right, followed by an _Adder_ and a _Shadow Cat_. The rest of its star must've been lagging behind, because it took a moment for the last two to catch up and clear the opening. The center of the enclosure had several stone structures reminisce of natural pillars, some being so large that they blocked the view of the incoming Vipers completely and added to a myriad of passageways ahead, closer to Weston and Asano.

Tension started to rise as a _Summoner_ and _Linebacker_ entered, raising the number of units in there over the ambush comfort range of the warriors concerned for Star Commander Shaine and his men down there. The bulk of the Nighthawks' contingent of elementals was concealed in an elevated cavern, with others in several side valleys throughout the enclosure's walls too small for 'mechs to march through. The heavier of the Viper stars was passing those groups now, and Shaine had to keep counting the 'mechs appearing so he knew how to divvy his forces when the second order hit.

Then a _Mad Dog_ entered, and the heavies ahead of it moved to the left to secure the other side in a wedge formation.

"_Sir?"_

"_Stand fast…"_ Thao ordered his men.

The sensor range fluxed with the iron deposits in the structures below and the hills themselves. Asano dared split his attention to peek at the only other opening to the enclosure, one on the east side, ahead of the heavies on the left. It was a ways off, and there were a few more pillar structures bending around outside the opening, making it almost look like a dead end passageway from within. Without seeing the rest of the cluster, it was hard to not be concerned with additional units using it to join the group already inside.

Then a _Nova_ came through, prompting the awaiting mechwarriors to check with their commander again, _"Sir?"_

Again, the response, _"Stand fast…"_

Thao was waiting. Waiting for that final unit to clear… And it came. A _Crossbow_ entered and found its way behind its starmates. Thao waited another few steps, increasing the tension of his unit. Shaine was already having to refigure its unit's formation due to the other star on the far side, and Bree was straining to see through her binoculars on her distant perch if there were any more Thao was going to allow to enter.

And another few steps, the _Crossbow_ was now hidden from view behind the central stone pillar. Then, to spike much more concern, another Viper 'mech began to fill the space behind the opening.

But the call was perfectly timed, _"Engage."_

Before the word was even finished escaping his mouth, Asano, Weston, and the other units of Charlie Star opened fire.

* * *

Mechwarrior Berch of the Steel Viper 195 Striker Cluster's Alpha Trinary's second star would normally have had reservations about entering such a complex, but the march was long and uneventful. Maybe it was his subconscious excited about the possibility of an ambush finally getting his mind focused and his weapons going, but it could just as easily been the wanting of a change of scenery.

Either way, his _Shadow Cat_ was just rounding a bend to a straightaway between the central stone pillars and the steep hill that formed the enclosing wall on the right side. The irony of his reservations about that surface impeding his moving options is that it was the only thing to keep his 'mech upright when his world exploded with incoming weapons fire that toppled him into it. The impact with the granite surface was rough, nearly smashing his right arm to scrap, but it kept him upright and allowed him to turn and face the mountainside that reigned fire upon them.

Without warning, multiple gauss slugs and pulse lasers surged from the high, rocky slope ahead and hammered his unit relentlessly. The impacts of the hits were louder than the sirens signifying the damage taken, and his own sense of balance was thrown aside as his _Shadow Cat_ was nearly knocked from its feet.

Slamming into the wall straightened him out, but he didn't even get a chance to look at his damage readout before the radio erupted with frantic chatter. He tried to look ahead and locate the direct source of the fire, but his attention was caught instead by the _Adder_ ahead of him shuddering under the impact of simultaneous gauss rifle slugs shredding its center torso. The slugs themselves ripped right through its top armor and it almost had to squat to absorb the sudden blowback. A gaping hole spewed wiring and moyomer out its back, having its guts ripped through itself as they were sucked out in the vacuum following the supersonic rounds.

"_Holy shit! Fire from vantage point--!"_

"_Multiple hits from ahead! Zero contacts confirmed--!"_

"_Ejecting!"_

Berch pressed forward trying to track the last PPC bolt that seared its way into the _Kit Fox_'s right torso, causing it to reset it footing. But not even two steps into his advance multiple flashes of light from behind lit up the snow around him accompanying muffled explosions and a new wave of concern.

He partially turned his 'mech to see what had happened when he saw the sides of the entrance collapse on the lead _Hellbringer_ of the third star, effectively closing the opening and disabling another 'mech simultaneously. One would think with the option of a tactical retreat off the table, it would be easier to focus one of the remaining strategies to gain some bearing. But even that focus was broken with an entirely new danger being shouted over the unit's comm., _"Elementals!"_

Cursing inside, Berch acted as a warrior should and surged forward. As he went he turned his torso to the left to catch a glimpse of the other Viper star swarmed with armored infantry. They were all over the units, on the cockpit, legs, back. Some 'mechs tried to shoot them off of each other, but they were flailing so much trying to dislodge the tiny aggressors that the shots largely missed. Seeing so many elementals so quickly at point blank range would throw any unit on the defensive, and there was where it remained.

Deciding to turn his attention away from the horde of elementals on the other side of the pillars, his star commander addressed the unit to get it back in formation, _"Bravo Star! On me! We need to get an angle on those elementals and get cover from the snipers at the same time! Punch it!"_

In actuality, the commander was slightly behind Berch in his sprint to the end of the cove. Gliding around the dead _Adder_ now lying on the ground, Berch kept his pace and steered his 'mech around a few natural stone structures. Nearing the end after the last pillar separating the Viper forces, he got ready to move his 'mech to the left to try and cover the other star's retreat only to find the hole around the corner clogged, with an entire star of Jade Falcon battlemechs.

The momentary recognition of the new threat caused him to lighten his turning radius into their sights, but in effect headed him straight for the solid wall ahead. Cranking hard on his throttle lever to avoid the needless collision, a new wall, one of autocannon fire slammed into him instead, and his cockpit imploded under the weight of the fire before he could even scream his surprise.

* * *

Star Commander Thao Prentice in his new _Night Gyr_ pumped all of his short and medium range weapons into the lead 'mech, a hapless _Shadow Cat_ that suffered the fate of a lethal cockpit hit from one or several initial shots. Had it not veered off course, the round probably would have nailed its torso instead. But he wasn't complaining, head shots in a melee were like an early Christmas to a mechwarrior.

The rest of its unit behind had little time to react to Thao's star pressing the charge around the corner their first victim emerged from. He found the sniper fire from the Nighthawks' Charlie Star was already pinning the Vipers back, allowing him a full two seconds to aim and fire before his targets were able to adjust their weapons at him. But that was all the time he needed.

The elementals were doing their job, planting explosives in the legs of the Viper's heavy star, slowly dismantling its ability to walk, let alone stand. When one group was done with their 'mech, they jumped onto another to help the elementals on that one finish their job. Then they jumped to the next together, and so on and so forth. The confines of the narrow path between the stone wall and the pillars was an elemental's dream venue.

The sudden surprise of the ambush let the Nighthawks take the Viper force by storm. Bree saw the enemy's reaction from the distance and automatically set their contingency force in motion. She radioed Gretchen to have her head out with her unit and catch the Viper reinforcements at the sweet spot they were headed for. And though she knew where Gretchen's unit was, she still admired how well the paint job blended it with the ground beneath.

* * *

Gretchen moved out in her _Warhawk_, leading Bravo Star around the enclosure entirely to intercept the Viper response team sent to the eastward opening. If allowed to enter, it would get behind the elementals and be in a great position to fortify the hole as an exit point for their forces against Thao's star on the adjacent end. Or worse, combine fire and take the initiative inside.

Her assault 'mech did not fit the paradigm of the star she was leading, as it was mostly medium and light 'mechs for scouting and cleanup. But Kael Pershaw was with her in his _Hellbringer_, adding his firepower to the _Incubus_, _Cougar_, and _Grendel_. Combined they had nine PPCs and a small variety of medium range weapons. She saw a good spot whose view encompassed the second opening and the pathway leading from it away from the carnage inside the enclosure. The star fanned out behind her, not looking for cover but exposing its entire arsenal to welcome the incoming units.

"Aim for the legs, and leave the finishing touches for the snipers."

"_Aff."_

She had this strategy worked out ahead of time. It was one of the most effective drills her unit ran against other Star Adder forces in their training drills, where she played the antagonist most of the time. How unforeseen it was at the time it becoming so applicable here …

It was awkward to sit in silence while the other two stars were coordinating over the radio and firing on the units inside the chasm. It was like being locked in a chest on the trunk of an antiquated horse carriage riding through battle.

Each member had their finger on the trigger of their control stick that would discharge their chosen weapons. It was almost a game to see who could fire first when the incoming unit exposed itself. But the winner, of course, is the one who actually hits its target.

And just like that, quicker than everyone expected, a Steel Viper reinforcement star rounded the corner at a generous pace to help bail its fellow warriors out of certain defeat, instead to be met with a wall of PPC fire. Shimmering bolts of lightning filled the space between them, the first few impacting the upper legs of the running 'mechs, and the rest of them punching through the now super-heated armor, sending two of the heavies flying forward from their momentum face first into the snow.

Gretchen and Kael both fired all their PPCs, forcing them to override their auto-shutdown sequences and let the cold environment augment their hard working heat sinks. Luckily, the other 'mechs were a little more balanced and were able to continue firing on the other three Vipers, some shots hitting and others forcing their targets to alter their course.

The return fire was surprisingly short lived, as Asano's _Stone Rhino_ fired a gauss volley at the lead medium from his distant post, punching through the 'mech's already weakened armor in two spots and having one of them blow out its left arm actuator.

Bravo Star then paused to coordinate another synchronized assault, again with mostly PPCs, at the remaining 'mechs. The result damaged them enough to allow Gretchen's star to scatter briefly when several Steel Viper jump-capable 'mechs entered started by clearing the hills before them. Ferra's _Summoner_ launched a massive volley of LRMs to finish off the reinforcement star as Bravo retreated, clouding the decimated force in fire and shrapnel.

The coordination was superb, and their victory quick, but they knew it was a hit and run operation, with the running part being top priority now. Viper reinforcements were finally getting within range to jump onto the walls surrounding the enclosure and get a hold of the situation. Gretchen's star booked it through a few pathways into an opening into the mountains proper while Thao's star navigated through the tighter trenches into a valley that linked up with Bravo Star's travel path. Charlie up top just started to walk away, simply enough, after sniping what was left of the crippled Viper 'mechs ahead of them and ignoring the fresh ones. Their objective was not to kill them all, but disable what 'mechs they could for the next day or so, allowing Thao to whittle their forces down for an actual confrontation.

When they were done, they knew they could move out with relative ease since the flaming ruins of an entire trinary posed no threat to them anymore and the reinforcements were still trying to get into the previous fire zone. Thao coordinated their movements so they could take another angle of approach and catch up to the rest of them despite their lack of speed. Charlie Star plodded along and absorbed just how quick and how effective the ambush was. It was swift, strong, and enough to remove near a third of the enemy ground forces in just a few minutes. In record time they effectively totaled out ten 'mechs and disabled three enough to not return to their main force while sustaining no casualties in return. It was near picture perfect.

An experience like that would surely make the enemy cluster commander alter its travel methods, which gave Thao that much more time to set up the next phase of his little campaign. If the rest goes anything like this did, they started to wonder if they couldn't march right into Renatia in their 'mechs. But it was a long haul ahead, and getting too cocky was a mistake they all were sure not to make.

* * *

Eighteen Jade Falcon aerospace fighters skimmed the surface of the dense clouds containing a miserable storm over the eastern part of the main continent of Marshall. They maintained a tight formation to minimize the group's radar cross-section, but the mist behind them kicked up from the defined upper cloud layer visually marked their position from miles away, if anyone were up here looking for them.

The Emerald Talon was sending tracking information to Gregors' aerial readout so he could coordinate the movement of his group and Sascha's star in the storm itself. Charlie Wing was tasked with baiting the Viper aerospace trinary attached to the cluster Thao was working on into the storm to engage them while Gregors' men above would drop in behind the unsuspecting enemy and force feed them a fistful of death. He had to stay out of radar range for it to work though, which is where the _Nightlord_ in orbit helped.

The gentle hum of Gregors' engines seemed to mark the passage of time in a smooth manner, helping him stave off any anxiety over the upcoming engagement. Air battles were so fast paced that even a seasoned veteran would have to be clinically dead to not feel the charging energy in his head he would need to settle his nerves in the midst of the actual combat. It was what he lived for, and it was what was going to kill him someday.

The sun was setting on this side of the planet, with it growing in size and nearing the actual horizon for its exit from the sky. It had an intriguing effect on the surface of the clouds themselves, with thousands of small shadows cast from the rolling moisture along the bumpy surface. Talk was rare among the units, and it was serene to say the least. Definitely the calm before the storm.

"_Sir, they are closing in. I expect radar lock in six-zero seconds."_ Sascha updated Gregors over their private comm. channel. Charlie Wing was going to be outnumbered and outgunned for a short period of time until Gregors was able to close in and crash the party. To make it work he had to wait until the Viper's force was committed to battle and had its attention already focused on the targets ahead. It put Sascha's unit in a bad spot, but he didn't seem to care. He liked the plan, especially because it provided him with the greatest combat challenge out of the other wings. More combat, more glory. And since glory wasn't really a reward in this campaign, the rush of combat and the bragging rights that followed apparently sufficed.

"Copy that. Moving to position now. Leave some of them for the rest of us, quiaff?"

"_Heh, aff. I will play nice… enough."_

Gregors contacted the rest of his force, "Alpha and Bravo on me. Go weapons hot at double max range and wait for my command for insertion."

The craft around him complied and he veered left, pitching his world sideways and watching the rest of them follow on his radar. He straightened out at the proper heading and kept track of the time so he knew when Sasha was going to be engaged. He didn't want his troops down there on their own for long.

Touching his throttle control, he felt his _Visigoth_ accelerate even more, with the hum of the engine rising in pitch and the energy of the flight shimmering through his body. They were getting close.

"_Engaging! Points two and three, head right and split their forces. Watch each other's backs. Job, you are on me. We are hitting the middle and punching through to circle back."_

"_Copy that. Forming up."_

"_There we go! Evasive maneuvers! They have missile lock! Deploying chaff!"_

"_Got you covered, two. Keep their attention. I have a surprise for them!"_

"_Bogey down!"_

"_Anna, you okay?"_

"_It just pinged my armor. Still 90 on the port side."_

The unit was in it thick, and Gregors knew they were outnumbered against the Viper trinary. It was eight on fifteen right now, well, fourteen with the recent kill. He needed to get within 800 meters before dropping in, giving his unit just enough time for one volley and disappearing again to split up and pinch them in on three sides. At this speed, 800 meters was not generous, and his palms started to sweat with the anticipation of the maneuver. Bravo Wing, the heavy hitters were behind him, being fairly sluggish in a dog-fighting situation but unsurpassed in head-on contests. Three points of _Scythas_ and two points of _Sabutai_ formed the bulk of their ground hitting power. They would have to take a back seat in this battle when they closed range, but from out here Gregors was glad to have them on his side.

"_Alright! Two down! Point two, cover four!"_

"_Copy that! Shit! I just took a missile hit!"_

Gregors could hear the impact and accompanying warning sirens in the background. But he could not shift his attention to figuring out what is going wrong with Job's craft. He was approaching 1,000 meters, and opened the comm. with the two stars behind him. "Alright, 200 minus. Pick your targets and drop at 800 meters."

"_Ahh! Job is down! Haley, link up with--!"_

Then another explosion rocked through the incoming signal from another craft, _"Fuck! Right engine is out! I lost my weapons with that last h--!"_ Then another impact.

"_Vans is down! I have a pair on my six!"_

Every report made the world heavier, harder to focus on the range meter. Gregors' meter ticked down so fast that his first digit readout was almost just a strobe. Confident his speed was to his liking, he selected the nearest Steel Viper fighter that just appeared on his sensors and heard the tone from his LRM systems tell him he was locked on. He added his PPC to the selected firing group before his range meter dropped below 800 meters. Then, like the weight of the atmosphere itself was lifted from his shoulders, he pitched down into the rolling storm below.

Instantly the moisture from the clouds impacted his cockpit glass, forming droplets that quickly streaked off to the sides. The new wind resistance resulting from the dense atmosphere forcefully slowed his craft, just a little, but the smooth glide he was used to was now a distant memory as he had to reorient himself to the more sluggish controls.

He couldn't actually see the Viper craft yet, which disturbed him greatly. He was still pitching down to match the altitude of his target, and his range meter was getting pretty low. At 550 meters he peered over to his telemetry, which was fuzzing in and out from the electrical interference of the storm and compared it to the surveillance signal from the Emerald Talon. 

Upon inspection, it looked accurate enough to convince him he wouldn't miss his target and hit one of his own men.

In a smooth motion, he turned his head forward to meet his distant threat and focused. He was waiting for something, anything to come into view, and then he saw it. A flash of light, probably a large laser in the distance made its way to his viewport. It was promising, and then his weapons' range meter went from green to red and he lined his reticle up with the leader, the smaller reticle floating ahead of the target brackets adjusting for its speed that told him where to fire to ensure the round hit the target when it approached.

And he squeezed the trigger. At once the crafts beside and behind him ripped a volley of fire off whose light refracted off the water molecules in the atmosphere, temporarily blinding all of them in a wash of blue and white. He waited a moment for his vision to clear, trying to confirm he hit his target when he finally saw the craft form in the distance through the clouds. It had blue electrical masses discharging from the surface of its right wing, telling him that his PPC did its job while the LRMs finally closed in, forming a surge of forty missiles streaking toward the craft in a menacing swarm of yellow.

He pitched his nose up to avoid return fire when some of his missiles hit their target and sent a series of concussive flashes across his lower plane of vision. Gravity pulled him into his seat as he rose through the clouds and leveled off to fly over the engagement altogether.

"Alright! Split up! Cage them in and finish them off!"

His pilots veered in every direction in accordance with his plan and circled around to encase the conflict below from three angles. As he turned wide, Sascha updated him, _"Sir! You got four with that. Three more got hit but are still up."_

"Understood. We are closing in for close engagement."

"_Aff."_

After his turn he saw the pandemonium, with all the remaining craft in Sascha's star and the Viper contacts, some of which were now burning wreckage falling toward the surface, soon to disappear in the clouds below.

Some of the Vipers had doubled up to form the standard wingman pair, something which was inherently absent with their one-craft-per-point set up that distinguished them from the other clans. Others just stayed on their own, struggling to keep from getting tunneled in by the pairs of Falcon fighters working together.

Then a laser seared past his cockpit, and his LRM targeting system gave him a tone again. Knowing better than to send a volley of missiles that large into a mess containing friendlies, he removed the launchers from his active firing group and replaced them with the 2 ER medium lasers in the nose of his craft, giving him more control over spread-fire.

And as soon as his point entered the fray the Vipers scattered, knowing that they were suddenly outnumbered. Shots went astray and all his pilots had to adjust to the sudden movements. Some overshot their targets, others simply slowed down and realigned.

His wingman barrel-rolled out of the way of a short range missile volley, and tried to respond with his own medium lasers, but missed as well. Gregors barrel-rolled as well into the previous flight path of his wingman as the Viper ahead concentrated on the other pilot instead, and led the fighter just enough to nail it with his PPC and one of his medium lasers. The impact jolted the craft to the left, almost sending it into a side-spin, but the pilot recovered and returned fire before passing Gregors and having to circle around for another attempt.

To his left he saw a pair of Falcons being followed by two Viper fighters trying to snipe them from behind. To his right he saw Blaze in his _Vandal_ burning past several engagements to roll and fire at the same time to slice his medium lasers across the flight path of his latest victim, sending the spinning array of concentrated light across the fuselage of a Viper _Batu_ and scorching a triple helix into the armor.

It took just moments for Blaze to close the distance and maneuver around the _Batu_, faking one turn and pulling the other way to rise directly behind the unsuspecting pilot, shooting two of his medium lasers through the exhaust port of the craft and into the engine. The result was not pretty as the craft was incinerated from the inside out, forcing Blaze to dive hard to avoid debris. How that man handled the G-force of his own maneuvering completely eluded Gregors, who for a moment questioned if he was even human.

Suddenly, an ammunition explosion caught his attention as his head turned to the right to see one of his _Jagatai_ blowing apart into several pieces. Its wingman just adjusted her course and continued on, trying to finish off the Viper pilot before her sudden lack of support became a problem.

Then his own combat enveloped him. Tracking a Viper _Sulla_, he led it enough to let his medium lasers leave their mark on its left wing. It suddenly cut to the side however, trying to evade the follow-up fire, which forced Gregors to bank right and predict the next movement, which he did correctly. The _Sulla_ rolled to its side and headed back in the direction it was previously heading, forcing Gregors' wingman to change course altogether to keep it ahead. But he saw it coming, and simply rolled his craft to the right, keeping it vertical on its side with his right wing pointing toward the ground and his left upward, until he saw the _Sulla_ break out of its roll and straighten out. And right when it did, Gregors' PPC intercepted it. Of course, at this speed he could not aim at particular areas of the craft as it was not humanly possible to do so. But his particle bolt caught the _Sulla_ in the joint between its right wing and the main body, crumpling the armor and searing part of the wing itself from the rest of the craft. He could not have asked for a better result as it never recovered. With half of its stabilization controls knocked off-kilter, it struggled to stay straight and drop altitude in a controlled manner, which took it from the main elevation plane of the mass combat and allowed Gregors' to unleash another monster volley of LRMs at it.

They snaked their way downward toward the crippled craft and most of them hit, enveloping it in a ball of fire that tore through the clouds downward toward the surface. He had no time to celebrate his kill however, as he banked right to re-align himself with the combat and felt the impact of a large slug punch his left wing.

The impact did not divert his path too much, but the damage readout was instant and the location momentarily chilled his blood to ice. It hit the ammo compartment of his LRMs, which housed 200 more missiles with their accompanied warheads. But the screen automatically zoomed in to show him that the compartment was not compromised, but the feed mechanism was damaged, prohibiting him from loading his left launcher again. He took that sacrifice of fire power well in light of the round not damaging his flaps or other control components.

"_Hold tight! I have him!"_ His wingman veered to catch the new assailant off-guard, missing his shot but getting its attention nonetheless and denying its follow-up attack.

Then a fighter behind exploded, and then another to his left caught fire before conflagrating into a mass of burning dead weight.

Concentrating on a _Kirghiz_ ahead, he saw one of his pilots veering far from the combat in pursuit of a Viper fighter trying to take their confrontation away from the main battle. He recognized the ID number next to the blip and opened up comm., "Blaze, status?"

"_Green on green, pursuing contact at high speed."_

"I can see that. Do what you do."

"_Always, Star Captain."_

Then the channel closed and he suddenly had to pull up, hard, to avoid the debris of another Falcon fighter as it rolled lifelessly toward him. He looked at his unit readout and quickly counted: 18 Falcon fighters still remained, some in questionable condition, but still fighting nonetheless. Though he lost eight, the Viper trinary was down to four fighters from their starting fifteen, including the one Blaze left after. With just three ahead, he did not have to coordinate his forces, as they naturally teamed up and funneled the remaining contacts into firing solutions. The result wasn't the quickest, but it was methodical and effective, which is all that he asked for. The baiting strategy, combined with accurate tracking from the Emerald Talon, superior numbers, and the two-fighter-per-point advantage over his adversary proved to be a winning formula. He knew his unit's superior experience through more deployments and real combat flight-time would pay off eventually, but this was better than he had hoped to accomplish.

After the last three were dispatched, he ordered the status of all his units. The star commanders reported each of their subordinates and the condition of their craft. All in all, it went pretty well. He had not yet mentally absorbed the loss of his pilots yet, preferring to do that after he has secured his unit on the ground again for the mere sake of not getting caught up reflecting the reality that was war until his unit's safety was no longer in question.

"Pilot Blaze, what is your status?"

The reply was not instant, with a short silence lingering. Then suddenly, with explosions and engine power fluctuations in the background foretelling a challenging dog-fight, Blaze replied, _"Still active sir. This guy is pretty good! I just--"_ The engine pitched again and Gregors heard the medium lasers discharge through his earpiece as Blaze was still trying to finish his opponent off. _"… got a good shot on me. She is holding up though. I will reform moment--"_

Then he was hit again. The impact was loud, and instantly warning sirens told all that he was in a lot of heat. Then the chassis shook, sending the vibrating noises over the comm. Normally a craft as light as a _Vandal_ is dead heat after one good shot, let alone even two mediocre ones. But he never lost faith. Gregors finally formed the remainder of his trinary up when Blaze came back to him, _"Ahh! Ahhhh-HAH! Yeah!"_

"I take it you are finished?"

"_Aff!"_ The excitement was thick in voice which was loud enough to come through over the cockpit warnings. _"I got hit pretty hard though."_

"What is your status?"

"_Umm… thrusters are fine, fuel is good."_ One by one he turned the sirens off and the vibrating rhythm subsided as he gained control over his craft again. _"My fire control is jacked though. And life support is damaged. I have air, but the ejection mechanism is offline and I had to shut down the heat sinks in the wings due to coolant line ruptures."_

"Alright. Proceed to the Iron Raptor for repair. You are no good to us in your current state."

"_Order confirmed. Returning to base."_

"Star Commander Sascha, Arianna: fuel…"

"_My guys are at 40. Some at 38."_

"_Same here Star Captain. The dogfighting drained us."_

He thought for a moment. He wanted to link up with Thao on the ground, but knew that he would burn more than half of his unit's remaining fuel just getting there. That would really limit any sustained close air support, and he did not want to risk losing any of his remaining pilots to fuel shortages if they get stuck and cannot pull out safely in the time needed.

So he made his decision. "Alright. Star Commanders, form up. Proceed to flight level 22,500 meters and head back to the Raptor. We all get checked out before redeploying for close air support."

"_Aff."_

"_Aff. Proceeding to twenty two-five at heading six-two-niner."_

He rose his craft over the clouds again, reducing the flight resistance and conserving as much fuel as possible. Luckily, Blaze would be back in time to get the bulk of his assessment and maybe even his repairs done by the time they arrived. His techs needed their A-game today, because getting that _Vandal _back in the air would be a miracle in its own right, and they had another seventeen projects literally landing on them after that.

* * *

Star Colonel Paul Thibaudeau pressed his 'mech forward across an open field of relatively little snow. The rhythmic booming of the monstrous _Dire Wolf's_ feet punishing the ground below helped calm his nerves, as he knew that the upcoming exchange with his commanding officer may get… heated.

Galaxy Commander Angelica Zalman finally got through to him as her image sprang to life in the communication display on the right side of his cockpit. _"Star Colonel, I have to wonder what kind of sick, twisted game you are playing with me over here."_

Her almost orange hair was bound in a pony tail, though her field uniform's collar was opened and her gloves were removed, depicting a sense of casual professionalism, if there was such a thing. She continued, _"Do you expect me to believe you did not take a nap on the job when I asked you to finish these Falcon bandits off quickly?"_

"Galaxy Commander, the situation is not quite as simple as that. They have front-line omnimechs with elemental and aerospace support. My forward unit--"

"_Is dead because of you! An entire trinary!"_ Of course, they were not all dead, as pilots both survived the ruining of their 'mechs or ejected, but her point was painfully absorbed. She stopped and breathed, forcing her anger inward so she could present herself more appropriately, _"I am within arm's reach of pulling your cluster from this assignment and sending in Star Colonel Jen Ahmed to do your job for you. But she is unfortunately busy right now, and I do not feel like waiting for your return and her departure to rid my new territory of these bandit scum."_

"Ma'am, I am negotiating the problem now. Their ambush was… more successful than we expected. They even anticipated our reinforcement route and--"

"_They are 'dezgra', Star Colonel. No better than Inner Sphere war criminals. You should have expected these tactics."_ She stopped to type something in on a screen out of view and continued, _"I see you have called for a Broadsword and some… interesting supplies. I take it you up to the task of countering the efforts of these freeborn?"_

"Yes ma'am. The ambush only fuels my men further. This will end quickly."

"_It had better, Star Colonel. I will await your update at 2100 hours. Galaxy Commander Angelica Zalman out."_

Paul pinched the bridge of his nose to help relieve the pressure building up behind his eyes. He knew he was embarrassed by the success of the enemy ambush earlier, but he did have to admire the way it was set up, and knew that any commander in his situation would have faced similar results.

The problem was: his aerospace detachment left almost an hour ago in pursuit of this bandit unit's own fighter craft, and has yet to check in. Which meant he was traveling blind, amongst other things. He adjusted his travel formation to have two medium stars on his deep flanks to spot anything ahead, making sure he did not get funneled into a trap again, but the extra caution slowed the overall speed of his cluster. And it did not take long for the ensuing silence to be broken, _"Star Colonel, we have movement on our right flank."_

"Really? Force composition…"

"_A Grendel, Cougar, and Incubus. It looks like the Falcons sent a recon unit out and they got too close."_

"Okay. Pull your men out and pursue. I want two stars on them while maintaining our right flank observers. This may be another ambush, so watch your step."

"_Aff. Bravo and Charlie Stars on me. Double-time it!"_

Paul then looked at his topography readout. Several large black blobs covered it reminding him that his air units were away and they had no orbital surveillance. The only eyes he had were his flanks, which kept reporting their terrain composition back to him. He tried to decipher the hills ahead, and saw what could be a pathway into the thick of it. So, operating on a hunch, he opened his comm. to Star Commander Pearl, heading up a medium star behind him. "Star Commander Pearl, I need you front and center."

"_Aff. Orders?"_

"I am sending the unit westward to deal with the Falcon reconnaissance; I want you to punch through the front and sweep back around in our direction."

"_What are you trying to find?"_

"Well, see if ambushing units are dug in first off. And if not, then pinch the small unit in and obliterate it."

"_Aff. And if there are ambushers?"_

"Relay their positions to me and await further orders."

"_Copy that. Star Commander Pearl, out."_

The medium star shot forward ahead of his men as he had the rest of the cluster move right to meet any ambushing activity the scout 'mechs may be baiting for. He was not about to fall for the same trick twice, but he was not going to waste time either. Some payback was needed to regain prestige, if not the initiative alone.

He checked his readouts and saw that the three Falcon 'mechs were already under some fire from his troops as they moved in fast. The _Cougar_ got nailed first as it was the slowest, but the terrain soon concealed them, and it was up to his intuition to carry the day just this little bit further.

* * *

The Steel Viper medium star protecting the left flank was keeping pace with its slowest 'mechs, the _Stormcrow_ and _Adder_. With the rest of the cluster veering off to dispatch the latest attempt at Falcon trickery, they were ordered to slow down and maintain a defensive posture. When the distant combat is over, they can resume their previous route and the day continues as planned. They were given a general area to stay in, allowing their star commander to look around a bit, getting a better feel for the valleys ahead. The snow got a little deeper in areas, but not enough to concern them. It was the rocky structures ahead that stood out the most. They were cautious not to enter the pathways too far, as navigating without the group behind was risky. But the sounds of battle over the comm. systems eased any tension. They knew they were going to win the day, with their numbers and their anger over the last encounter. There was no more doubt in their minds that they were dealing with completely dishonorable bandits here, relying on their dirty tricks to embarrass them, the clan that was winning its multi-planet strike ingeniously planned and executed by khans who seemed to learn their lessons in their last Falcon invasion in the OZ so long ago.

Their mistake was not entirely their fault, though. It was years of conditioning to not only enjoy war, but absorb it to gain any kind of tactical information useful later on. Each warrior had their radio turned up so they could get a clear mental picture of the honorless Falcon 'mechs retreating into the safety of the valleys.

The combat was pretty simple, with the Vipers gunning them down from behind and they ran with their tails between their legs and fled from the superior numbers in pursuit. How they got stuck in the open was not a concern anymore, as survival in the wake of such a mistake was surely the only thought going through their head.

But it was this false understanding that led three of the five warriors present in a distracted effort to visualize the distant battle and ignore their close-range sensors, if just for a moment. It was the remaining two that noticed the red blips appearing out of a dark blob on their sensor readout signifying the missing areas on their topographic display. The dots emerged at what looked like full speed, and headed straight for them. But the two observant warriors' frantic warnings only snapped the others into awareness, audibly overpowering the realization that they all had at that moment: the three hapless Falcons under fire now were not stupid enough to get caught in the open. They were the bait…

* * *

Thao led the charge in his _Night Gyr_, leading a wall of Falcon 'mechs toward the small group of Viper 'mechs cut off from their unit. The footsteps were not synchronized, so all eleven 'mechs contributed to the veritable earthquake that had the enemy unit bumbling around trying to brace itself for what was coming.

His PPCs began the punishment, as his opening shot ignited a surge of weapons fire from behind. It was like being in control of a tidal wave, with the utmost power at his fingertips. The orders were simple: 'hit them with everything you have and do not let up until they are disabled or dead'.

While he could not hear the Viper communication lines, he only imagined they were frantic and high with tension. As his force closed in around the Viper star, he could sense the common intensity from all of his warriors. They kept on firing, using the cold to their advantage as it assisted their heat sinks into safely allowing a sustained attack.

It was straight on, with the Viper _Hankyu_ trying to retreat to a better position having its right knee blown out by a PPC bolt and collapsing in the way of its comrades. None of the others dared expose their back to get to a better spot, as they just hunkered in returned fire, initially singing the armor of both Thao and Asano's 'mechs. But the rolling onslaught was too great, and the most successful Viper 'mech, the _Adder_, received multiple pulse lasers to the chest and two short range missile volleys to the legs to silence it momentarily.

One Viper 'mech fell, then another wavered. The Nighthawks were getting close, with damage readouts being completely ignored on their ascent. "Marx, Weston, focus right, on that _Grendel_!"

He moved his reticule over to target the _Stormcrow_ when several explosions blew the armor off the _Grendel_ as its LRM ammo bins were punctured. The explosions were muffled through all the firing, but the concussive jolts shook the 'mech in several directions like it was having a seizure before black smoke started pluming from its gaping wounds. It was incredible it didn't hit the ground, and it even returned fire with its only remaining laser, to have one gauss slug rip through the weakened part of the smoke-filled hole and another impact the center torso, denting the armor and shoving the entire 'mech back with the weight of the impact.

It never recovered as Thao kept his attention on the _Stormcrow_, who just lost its left arm and was lowering its torso for a frontal charge. He responded accordingly, "Oh crap, the _Stormcrow_ on my twelve is charging! Take out its legs!"

With Thao igniting his jump jets and launching his 'mech to the right, gliding over the snow-covered rock and sending clouds of the frozen particles streaking into the air, the _Stormcrow_ pitched its torso to the left to keep Thao in its sights. But the moment its facing changed, a wall of missiles and several lasers pummeled its right side, throwing its aim off and unnaturally shifting its weight to its left leg.

It feinted falling for just a moment before rocking back to a stable center of balance. But the pilot's effort went unrewarded, as the moment its right foot hit the ground the compartment between its leg joints containing the gyro blew out the rear, sending gears and searing hot fluid across the broken snow. It tried to continue firing, but Thao's autocannon and Ras' medium lasers relentlessly violated the exposed chassis, and in short order it fell over, lifeless.

It was now down to the remaining _Adder_, whose pilot held up the best despite the quick passing of its starmates. Though the star was outnumbered more than two to one, it failed to concentrate any fire enough to significantly damage any of the Falcon chargers in the time it took for the combat to resolve.

"_Sir, I have contacts approaching from the north."_

Thao put his 'mech in reverse and looked over the ridge to the northern opening as soon as he cleared it. Sure enough, there was a Steel Viper _Executioner_ speeding its way to reinforce the doomed star. Who was behind it mattered not, Thao just turned his torso back and proceeded out of the area in the direction they came, "Alright, party is over. We need to pull back before our kill ratio drops."

The unit unanimously agreed, and the resulting explosion signifying the passing of the final _Adder_ behind them making its way over Thao's external mic started a silence that he hoped would last a while. Because with another star down in such a manner, the Steel Vipers would be wanting some payback real bad. Either they were going to go ultra-conservative in their approach, or pull out the stops altogether. And he was guessing the latter.

With the bulk of his unit retreating to the safety of the valley system and the smoking remains of the Steel Viper scout star behind, he once again opened the comm. channel with the three diversionary 'mechs hopefully enjoying the same quiet now. What he found was most disappointing…

* * *

Mechwarrior Erik already escaped death once this week when he ejected from his _Timber Wolf_ in the possession trial for Renatia. The fact that his save could be nullified by his passing now never crossed his mind, as he got hit again in the rear with an autocannon round.

"Son of a--!" he cursed as he finally skidded around the corner he was aiming for these last few moments. His feet lost traction, but he quickly regained the machine's balance with his own efforts through the neurohelmet. Keeping the throttle forward, he saw Lana's _Grendel _and Malcolm's _Incubus_ dart across the small valley floor to another series of corridors. The walls were high and he knew that was good, but one wrong turn here could spell the end for them quick. He did not expect the Vipers to launch an offensive so aggressively after what happened to them last time. They were supposed to be able to evade and retreat with relative ease, but they did not predict the intensity of the response being so great, nor so fast.

"_Hang in there, Erik! Another 500 meters of separation and we are golden!"_ Lana told him of her plan, which was good to know since he took the brunt of the initial fire.

"_How is it,"_ Malcolm asked?

"Weapons are fine, but my rear armor is nearly scrapped. Two heat sinks down, but other than that I am tip top." Of course, he knew another good shot to the rear could very well plant him in the dirt, but he had to stay optimistic given the circumstances.

Then his radar pinged and his rear-view showed a Steel Viper _Black Lanner_ rounding the corner behind him in hot pursuit. He watched as it lined up its dreadful large laser at him and awaited his end when the view flared white momentarily and he heard Malcolm cheer as his PPC nailed the _Lanner_ in its right arm, forcing it to reel back and absorb the shot rather than fire on his worn _Cougar_.

"Great shot!" Erik exclaimed as he saw another Viper 'mech appear around the bend. But he was moments from clearing some debris that would ruin their line of sight and decided it better to focus on his maneuvering for his destination instead of evasive action.

The enemy _Viper_ following the _Black Lanner_ accelerated toward him, trying to finish him off but falling victim to the fruition of Erik's plans, which put a lot of rocks between him and the pursuing 'mech. Up ahead he saw Lana's _Grendel_ checking the new target corridor for exits when he realized they may actually pull this one off easier than he thought after taking all that heat from behind. It was just a matter of not losing stride…

Lana ran for a jutting rock wall to her left to position herself so that when she turned around to give covering fire she could easily sidestep behind her own cover to avoid unneeded retaliation. Little did they know it wasn't just a wall, but the crest of an opening to some valleys on the other side of the enclosure. They all mentally predicted her reaching the point and turning, accepting the outcome as reality before the unthinkable happened: A Steel Viper _Summoner_, seemingly also unaware of the terrain ahead of it, surged through the opening and slammed into Lana's _Grendel_ so hard it knocked it from its feet. The resounding impact shook the canyon, sonically interpreting the damage inflicted with a visual display of armor, gears, and a 'mech's entire arm exploding from their respective bodies and sailing through the air.

The _Summoner_ had twisted upon impact, sending it to its left, which was the direction Lana was running, while her 'mech landed and skidded several meters through the snow covered ground before the following silence allowed everyone to absorb what just happened.

"Lana?" Erik called.

There was no reply. Then Malcolm chimed in, _"Ah shit! There are more of them, coming from behind her!"_

Then Erik saw what he was talking about. Four more Steel Viper 'mechs worked their way through the opening the _Summoner _inadvertently cleared moments ago. They paused to take in the scene before them, with two seemingly lifeless 'mechs strewn on the ground ahead. But their observing the scene only took a moment, as the Steel Viper flanking unit collectively lifted its weapons to Malcolm's _Incubus_ on the ridge and took aim. With Erik's three-man team outmaneuvered and outgunned, his options were finally vanquished. Not only did they fail Thao and their unit, but their loss will decrease its firepower enough to seriously put it in a bind.

But, like a true warrior, it was Erik's duty to use up what ammo he had left so this venture didn't go to waste when the three of them finally fell. The Vipers seemed to catch on and outsmart them this time, making them pay the ultimate price for antagonizing them the way they had.

Malcolm's response to the concentrated fire came quick however, as he instantly sprinted down the ridge toward them weapons blazing. His PPC nailed the second Viper 'mech, a _Linebacker_ in its lower torso, surprisingly ripping through the joint between two armor plates and penetrating the engine shielding. The _Linebacker_ took a step back and resettled while its starmates opened fire on the streaking _Incubus_.

A dim glow made its way from the small opening in the darkening sky as it was almost nightfall now and the shadows strewn across the valleys blended together to unify the world once again. The sun's demise seemed to coincide with their own, and both were sure to be missed soon enough.

With Malcolm keeping their attention in his suicide run, Erik stopped, zoomed in on the crack in the _Linebacker_, and took careful aim. Keying both his PPCs into his firing group, he held his breath momentarily and fired, watching one of the bolts sear the armor above the opening and the other blast through it. Instantly his view zoomed out as he threw his throttle lever forward to position himself for the follow-up.

His heat sinks began their work, which was much easier given the cold they were in and the _Linebacker_ stopped moving. It probably overheated in spite of the cold as its reactor shielding was toast and the pilot needed to work the computer to allow him to revive the beast.

With Malcolm in a flurry of evasive movement and Erik in full charge, a volley of missiles carpeted the rear of his _Cougar_, sending it stumbling forward and forcing several warning klaxons to erupt in the cockpit. The _Viper_ behind must've caught up, because Erik was successfully pinched between a rock and harder rock. So he kept up the charge, plowing PPC after PPC into the _Linebacker's_ center mass, trying to finish its engine off before succumbing to his ultimate fate.

He did not hear Malcolm before his _Incubus_ imploded under the weight of the Viper star's concentrated fire, and Erik himself didn't even blink at the stirring _Grendel_ Lana was reviving.

With the focus of the star going from Malcolm to Lana, Erik launched forward in his seat while another missile volley decimated his 'mech from behind. His engine lost power, and he slowly ground to a halt. His heat was now way over acceptable levels and he already overrode the automatic shutdown sequence. Time sped up and he knew he ran out of it. With a rarely practiced Falcon war cry, he filled his cockpit with the audible storm that foretold his final drive into the heart of the enemy, one that was shorter lived than he had hoped.

His final shot rang true as it collapsed the engine shielding of the _Linebacker_ and damaged its prize enough to immobilize it on the field. It was the last thing he did before the incoming fire literally picked his _Cougar_ apart as the chassis lifted from the ground before dismantling. He lived for a few agonizing moments, with the heat of the cockpit nearly cooking him inside before his world went black.

But, in a final act of defiance, Lana, using Erik's passing as the distraction that kept her invisible for just moments, stomped on the cockpit of the stirring _Summoner_ prone below her and alpha-struck a Viper _Hellbringer_ ahead, watching her fire dent and mar the outer armor of the machine before the _Viper _behind nailed her in the back, causing her to turn, barrels smoking and eyes narrow, to stare the 'mech down before the rest of the star finished her off. Being gunned down in such a manner mattered not. Just her defiance told a story told a thousand times over in the history of her clan.

To the Steel Vipers present, she was dishonorable, foolish, and inferior. To the 'mech lying at her feet, she was a god.

* * *

Night vision did so little good in this weather that Julian was forced to use an LED head lamp to allow him to see the object of his work. The storm here was getting worse, blowing north and carrying with it the unimaginable cold of the planet's polar ice caps.

Wearing snow goggles and a neoprene face mask, the moisture from his warm exhale collected on the material and slightly heated the air as he inhaled. But even the full standard issue cold-weather gear Jacob's men had loaned him failed to insulate him completely. Maybe it was the barren fields, or the fact that he was surrounded by near 1,000 kilometers of nothing but lifeless rock, making his death one fatal slip on the wrong patch of ice that prevented him from warming up. Either way, his hands stung from both the wind hitting them and the lack of blood to the tissue so commonly afflicting appendages in these situations.

He worked the lifter joint of the right track of his snowmobile with the multi-tool he had on his belt. With all the ports on the vehicle itself used to carry extra fuel, he did not have the tools necessary for a quick-repair when one of his hydraulic lifter controls seized up. Taking his time to avoid making any mistakes that would force him to relive this experience anytime soon, he squinted to see through the blowing snow obscuring his view.

He tried hard to force thoughts of a warm getaway out of his head, trying to focus on the task at hand. He had a strict time-table to work with and a seemingly impossible distance to go before assessing the avenues available to completing his objective.

With the final twist of the wrench fitting completing the repair, Julian looked up through the snow to momentarily absorb the storm above. He was at the base of so much energy, so much synchronized chaos that only nature could impose innocently. Everything else in the world with this destructive force was a reflection of some living thing's dark desires, not the needed balance the world all too often misunderstood that the storm accomplished.

He saw nothing but black above, as the dense clouds blotted out the stars and any light. The only snow he could see as white was that close enough to catch the light of his head-lamp. The rest was dark with the landscape. It seemed like the setting of a nightmare in some old horror movie, desolate and foreboding.

But the truth was: the single most powerful force of destruction here was not in the air, but mounting his vehicle to continue his trek. It was cold, and lonely. And as he twisted the handle to open the throttle of his ride, Julian thought of how much better it would be with his unit right now; if the despair and crushing weight of the world was so obvious over there as well, or lost in the chaos itself.

* * *

"_I have incoming!"_

Several Steel Viper VTOL transports screamed overhead as the Nighthawks continued their efforts at reaching some kind of safety. It seemed as if the Steel Vipers had a new commander running the show, or at least a new battle-plan as in stead of regrouping and securing their location like Thao had predicted, the Viper cluster immediately pressed the charge and sprinted after the Nighthawks, taking the initiative by force in a battle Thao was not ready for. 

And, telling him how fluid an enemy he was now facing, VTOLs immediately swept the area following their previous small-unit ambush. They stayed high and tracked the Nighthawks as they converged and moved to what he planned to have their regrouping point. But with their location and status broadcasted, they had no time or opportunity to execute any kind of counter-offensive. It was just a mad dash to get unseen and out of the line of fire enough to regain the initiative, and that was not an option provided.

Night fell fast on Marshall. Almost instantly it seemed as the extreme shadows of the last conflict were now distant memories, replaced with pockets of impenetrable black and concentrated beams of search lights searing through the frozen air.

With the remainder of the Viper cluster in pursuit, Thao kept his team moving. He cut his loss that was the three-man diversion team that was outmaneuvered and cut off from its extraction route, focusing instead on planning the remaining unit's travel path and ongoing rules of engagement on the fly.

Ammo conservation was key as he did not want ammunition wasted on attempts at slapping the Viper spotters out of the sky. His was the eternal struggle to hit rough terrain to slow the larger, bulkier force pursuing from behind, but in doing so forcing his own unit to traverse areas single file and expose them temporarily. He tried as much as possible to spread them out when he could, giving them more flexibility to exploit safer travel paths. But the opportunities for that decreased as well as they neared the mountains proper. No matter the action, Thao could just not seem to gain any distance between him and his pursuers.

Regardless of the adjustments, the Steel Vipers must've realized that Thao was heading straight into the mountains, where the terrain would ultimately favor a smaller, more maneuverable force. In an attempt to slow his men further so the heavy guns could catch up, they resorted to a more creative approach. The VTOLs slowed in the distance, hovering above some valley areas while slightly rotating around for maximum view. Thao zoomed in through his _Night Gyr's_ optical array and saw small reflections and surfaces through snow-fall irregularities. His blood ran cold for a moment as he accounted for the number of transports and their carrying capacity. Then he informed his unit of the impending danger between them and their sanctuary while trying to formulate a plan to minimize their loss of speed as they moved on. "We have elementals hot-dropping ahead at multiple headings. It looks to be four points, maybe an entire star."

"_Great! They can track us all day for ARROW-IV strikes,"_ Weston groaned as they followed a path that declined deeper into the cover ahead.

"Star Commander Shaine," Thao started.

"_Sir!"_

"I want you mounted up. Grab two of your best points and have Mechwarriors Kim and Ferra escort you to nav point Gamma." Thao punched in the new nav point so everyone could see what he was doing. "Kim, Ferra, you are to drop them and proceed to nav point Sigma. Stand fast until given further orders, and keep your heads down."

"_Aff."_

"_Aff!"_

With some of his elementals heading southwest to clear one path of infested corridors, he channeled the rest of his team southeast, to both keep his options open and keep the Vipers from predicting his course of action.

The ground now inclined as they proceeded, and it forced his units to bunch up to fit between the narrowing walls. They were still moving faster than normal cruise speed, taxing the heavier 'mechs and keeping their heat generally in the yellow. They had not had a break since before the early evening's ambush, and the combat fatigue was something Thao was _not_ ready to deal with. They had to keep pressing hard, harder than their adversary to make it through this.

A shape moved to Thao's left, something near the top of the cliff face. It was so dark here that he second guessed almost everything he saw, terrain included. His light-amplification system helped him plan his footwork, but suddenly the searchlights from the pursuing Steel Viper cluster seared their way over and forced his display to refocus a few times, dimming and brightening in an attempt to stay consistent. Needless to say, it was counter-productive as constant re-focusing only obscured his view further. The frustration was thickening in his cockpit's air, like another passenger was forming and crowding him in.

The shape itself was nothing, as confirmed by the sweep of a Viper spotlight as it passed overhead. But he knew he was in for it soon as those elementals would be entrenched by the time he approached them and this was by far the worst venue to combat armored infantry when you could not afford to stop.

The VTOLs hit a circling pattern over them, constantly giving their position to the Viper commander behind. But the unit was closer than Thao thought, as suddenly, while he dipped back down into the black canyon ahead, several lasers and PPC bolts burned past the heads the exposed members of his unit. Then the comm. opened up and he heard an impact outside an unfortunate pilot's armor, _"Ahh! I have been hit! Right in the back of the head!"_

"_Multiple shots. Damage to right rear torso and arm. A few more of those and I am out of the—Ah, stravag!"_ He heard another hit over the transmission, then another, and then a warning siren. It was Asano and he was getting lit up like a fireworks display back there.

Thao switched his auxiliary view to his rear arc and saw that multiple Steel Viper 'mechs found perches and sniped at his men with patient precision while the rest pressed on to close the gap between them. It was like walking straight into a trap with no other option, but they were definitely surprising him now. Instead of subsiding, the laser fire actually intensified, nailing Weston's _Glass Spider_ and Carlis' _Mad Dog_ simultaneously, splashing light through the narrow valley from the impact of the different colored beams refracting off the cooking armor.

"_That is it!"_ Asano had enough and stopped to turn around, finally disrupting near twenty minutes of uninterrupted marching. With the pathway the way it was, it forced Weston and Carlis to slow down to avoid hitting him. But instead of going around the 100 ton roadblock, they followed suit, acting on their own frustration and turning to fire at the Vipers.

"Asano, negative! Resume your--" But it was too late. Mechwarrior Asano opened fire with multiple gauss rounds, combining it with Weston and Carlis' extended range and pulse laser arrays. Instantly Thao's fears manifested, as not only were the _Mad Dog_ and _Glass Spider's_ weapons out of range of the snipers, but after the first shots, the spotlights converged on Asano's cockpit, drowning the _Stone Rhino_ in white and blinding him entirely.

That is when the incoming fire really intensified and two ARROW-IV precision artillery missiles appeared in the distance, creeping over a valley wall and snaking their way toward the behemoth in plain view. _"Asano! Evasive action! Get the hell out of there!"_ Star Commander Marx ordered his troop to get out of the line of fire with concern thick in his voice.

"_Cannot… see…!"_ The _Stone Rhino_ stammered a bit, showing Asano's deteriorated sense of balance through his neurohelmet and the 'mech itself. It again received a barrage of fire that maybe just singed the surface armor, but kept it distracted enough to not see the incoming missiles. Weston knew what was up, and started running toward Asano despite the incoming fire. The whole unit watched as listened as Weston contacted Asano over the comm. and the light-speed drama unfolded.

"_Asano! You have inbound!"_

"_I can hear it! Where…!?"_ The missile lock klaxon dominated the background of Asano's transmission, along with a myriad of other sensor warnings. It was chaos in his cockpit, with him the sole victim. But Weston had faith in his friend. He walked right in-between the sniping Vipers and the _Stone Rhino_, blocking the spotlights and taking the incoming laser fire for him just long enough for Asano to see the incoming missiles and react.

With the two fireballs screaming in close, pulling the world around them inward in their wake and sucking the sound out of everything else, the _Stone Rhino_ dropped to the ground, its legs kicking out from under it resulting in an astonishing display followed by a graceful impact just in time to have the missiles tear over him and pulverize the granite behind. The detonation was forced into the rock, subduing the emitted light but blowing debris deep across their previous flight path and over the prone assault 'mech. Rock and ice rained down on Asano while Weston was quick to turn and rejoin his comrades deeper in the pass.

The spotlights again disbursed and eventually dropped behind the crest line, washing a shifting white glow over the top foretelling their movement and approach. Not being able to see this forever closing wall of enemies generated a whole new kind of pressure.

Asano recovered and turned to rejoin the rest of them while Thao finally looked around to get a visual status check on his men. But the VTOLs had started bathing the ground with their own distant spotlights, showing Mechwarrior Rainer's now erratically swinging _Turkina_ covered in Steel Viper elementals.

"Ah, shit! Rainer is swarmed!" He informed everyone while turning his 'mech to help snipe the assailants off of his starmate. The missile lock sensor erupted in his ear right as Kael contacted him.

"_We have to move. This area is not defendable."_

"I know. Jump-capables, on me!" he replied acknowledging the incoming threat as more artillery missiles. The 'mechs in the enclosure fitted with jump jets closed in around Thao while the others scattered, performing a movement drill practiced scores of times in the past.

The warning beep got faster as the missiles closed range until it was a constant chime. He knew ARROW-IV artillery missiles needed to be guided by someone using target acquisition gear, which in this case meant a Viper elemental had them painted. The missiles could change course slightly to hit the largest number of 'mechs possible, maximizing their effect, so his strategy had to be executed flawlessly to have any success at all.

Call it coincidence, but as Thao gave the command to jump to the clustered 'mechs around him, Rainer did as well, shaking the last of the elementals off his chassis.

With a deep roar, the artillery missiles swept under the jumping 'mechs and burrowed into the ground before blowing outward, creating a momentary shell of carnage and a crater deep enough to engulf a lighter 'mech.

Right after the deafening explosion below, Rainer's landing _Turkina_ suffered its own internal conflict, as the only charge able to be planted by the now vulnerable elementals detonated inside his right torso. Armor flew off in pieces and his right jump-jet fragmented in the blast. With 95 tons being suspended in air by just three jets, the loss of one nullified its thrust balance and quickly pitched it to the right. The sudden change spun the 'mech diagonally so its front torso faced the ground as it fell face first into the rocky bed.

"Rainer! Status!"

"_Aww, man! Lost right jump jet and two heat sinks. Engine is okay, but it may be exposed…"_

Then Gretchen chimed in keeping the timing of the combat at a relentless pace, _"Point four on me, we are heading to that opening so you can flush those spotters out!"_

The enthusiastic response from the elementals was unanimous as they disembarked Ras' _Warhammer IIC_ and latched on to her _Warhawk_ whose dark chassis was only visible in several places by the ambient light reflecting from the elementals' small jump jets.

Asano was now back in the mix and Thao saw his two elemental points to the southwest making their way to a connecting valley in front of the two cave entrances. His follow-up was automatic, "Ferra, Kim, make your way east and plant yourselves on that ridge to provide cover fire for a tactical retreat."

They complied and started bunny hopping with their own jump-capable 'mechs to their new destination marked on their readouts. He looked at his own sensors as he headed toward the left of the two openings exiting this hotspot, opposite the one Gretchen was dumping their elementals in.

Struggling to get an accurate account of that engagement, Thao shot his searchlight into the opening containing the elementals, whom were surprisingly in hand to hand combat with what looked like two points of Viper counterparts. Gretchen's _Warhawk_ sped its way from the conflict trying to avoid getting swarmed herself. She predicted the spotting unit was somewhere in the entrance there, but not the numbers present.

She cursed herself inside her head for condemning the elementals to death by dropping them in a nest of awaiting combatants outnumbering them. Her moment of reflection was cut short as a wash of white engulfed the enclosure from the cluster of Steel Viper 'mechs finally rushing over the far ridge and exposing the Nighthawks with frightening speed. Autocannon fire zipped past her from the lead 'mechs that were veering west toward a level path that would send them right into the heart of the Falcon location. The lights were so strong in the depths of this valley that Thao had no way of singling out any Viper unit individually, being nearly blinded if he looked behind him and seeing only shifting movement in the spaces between the searing beams. It was like a closing wall of white fire was descending, which was personified by opportunity laser fire hailing from within it.

"_Heading seven-seven-four,"_ Kael Pershaw was already heading toward the other exit when he ordered their retreat. Fluidly and without question, the other Nighthawks fell in line and followed; accepting that whatever awaited them in that opening was better to deal with then the angry horde of enemy warriors approaching from behind with their backs to a wall.

While the unit drifted away from the center of the enclosure toward the left exit, a new warning echoed in the group's cockpits. Area effect artillery missiles were cruising their way inbound, but the chaos would not allow everyone the opportunity to predict their destination.

The remaining elementals in close combat in the other exit fought viciously to keep the Viper infantry present. It wasn't their initial strategy, but at this point, preventing the Viper forces from doing anything they wanted seemed like appropriate revenge for trying to annihilate them. The communications came in quick spurts as laser fire and a few short range missiles accompanied the grunts and metallic impacts of the ensuing struggle, _"They are trying to move south!"_

"_Why are they retreating? They still outnumber us!"_

"_There! Cut them off over there!"_

"…_are getting pinned down here…!"_

"_Rojas is down! My leg is fucked up! Go ahead of me!"_

Suddenly the situation unraveled itself. The skyward missiles veered right and shot straight for the valley the elementals were in. The warheads broke off into dozens of pieces and blanketed the isolated combat zone. Then, rather instantly, the horror of their situation presented itself in explosive fashion.

They were FASCAM mines, and the Viper elementals called them in to cover their retreat from any pursuing Falcons. But with the unexpected Falcon elementals stalling their retreat, they all got caught in the target zone and suddenly found themselves imbedded in a massive minefield with no means of escape. Some jump-jetted as far as they could to try and clear the scattered mines, but ultimately failed to give them enough distance. Their landings resulted in separate explosions that were distanced from the combined, fiery mass of armor and body parts spiraling in every direction from the cluster of troops in the center of the valley. Their screams gelled together to form a single sonance, eerily negating the horror of over a dozen deaths to one, combined demise.

* * *

Pilot Blaze was nearing the Iron Raptor with just 15 of his fuel remaining. With his ejection and weapons systems offline, he knew he would more than likely miss out on any more action. Those repairs would take some time depending on the nature of their malfunction, which could have been one of a thousand things.

He listened in on the battle below through the comm. channels as he descended below the clouds and got in range. He heard the emotions rich in their voices. They were definitely losing, and he felt nothing but anxiety not being there.

He monitored the battle the entire way in since he was in range to hear it, and kept envisioning scenarios in which he could assist. None of them worked since he could not fire, and he knew if he diverted he would be out of fuel shortly after arriving on-scene. Some avoidable crash-landing was not appealing to him, but he kept thinking anyway.

And then, the elementals came in, _"They are trying to move south!"_

"_There! Cut them off over there!"_

"…_are getting pinned down here…!"_

It was accepted now that this was the Nighthawks' final battle. No planning for the future, no holding back. It was time to attempt the impossible. It was a miracle he survived so many hits in the last engagement in his light craft, and maybe he did so for a reason. So he made a decision, and while every logical instruction in the universe would have disagreed, an invisible weight lifted from his chest and a small smile crept its way across his face, belying eyes burning with desire and determination.

* * *

New activity illuminated the night far behind the Nighthawks as they regrouped in the final cover point of the basin with the Steel Viper cluster working its way across. Something was going on back there, but none of them could see what. Either way, it was big and probably not a positive development to their current situation. But, at the very least, the momentary pause in combat gave them the opportunity to assess their dire situation.

Thao found what could be their salvation: a cave entrance across a barren stretch of rock leading into the mountain ahead. Initially, it looked like just a low plateau, which was not good if he was looking for superior structural integrity. He knew all to well how to exploit that from 

the last time he was on this planet, unknowingly hunting down his own unit. Some of the caverns here were lined with hardened ice more than rock, making cave-ins fairly more common than one would expect. But at this point he would take what he could get. And if that meant he could regroup without the distraction of enemy fire, so be it.

The enemy booked it hard to close the distance with the Nighthawks and finish them off to end this prolonged attempt at survival. Ferra and Kim were still a distance away trying to rejoin the main group, but were slowed down with the opportunity fire making them pay every time their 'mech's heads exposed themselves above the crest line.

The Falcon elementals in the forward corridor made their way closer to the cave entrance Thao had labeled for them, but were hampered by their short legs in comparison the battlemechs they were competing with. It would be a little while before they could enter and survey the internal caverns to ensure they were not only safe for travel and defendable, but not a dead end that would screw them all.

They updated Thao as he regained the lead and conferred with Kael about the method of approach. The two quickly shot strategies around while getting the rest of the unit in formation to negotiate the barren stretch ahead offering no cover from the aggressors behind that they would have to traverse before reaching the cave opening.

"_Sir, there is no way we can make it that far without significant casualties,"_ Marx told Thao while weighing in on the exchange.

Gretchen also contributed, _"I concur. The front line of Vipers will be in range by then and throw everything they have at us."_

Kael threw his justification out there, _"The other two openings are too far to guarantee any safe arrival, and the direction change will allow them a superior angle of interception, putting them within medium weapons' range. That is unacceptable."_

They all understood his reasoning, but still had reservations about running the gauntlet ahead without some kind of covering fire.

But they didn't have long to contemplate. Right as Asano and Ras got into position their best laid plans were shredded before their very eyes as a Steel Viper _Broadsword_ dropship thundered overhead, shaking the valley and overtaking their conversation entirely.

They all looked up in awe as it flew low over their heads to turn near their coveted cave entrance. Its weapons were dormant, but its retro-rockets kicked up enough snow to act as its own storm system. The thing was enshrouded in the black that surrounded them all, being seen only by the refracted light of its rockets and blinking hull markers. The majestic and overbearing mass ahead hovered in place after it rotated to face them, waiting for its two side and single nose bay doors to open and reveal a heavy combat star fitted with jump-packs.

With grace, the barely visible 'mechs leapt from their compartments and floated toward the ground between the Nighthawks and the cave entrance they so desperately needed to reach. Their jump-packs illuminated the ground beneath them in a scratchy shade of orange while they landed before disengaging from the backs of their riders, leaving the new spotlights from the advance team to box the Nighthawks in a confusing array of exposure.

Then the dropship lifted itself into the sky with a roar from its engines and flew off, leaving Thao and his troops scurrying for cover now from both the new threat on their south side and the ominous horde to the north.

The new Viper star immediately formed a V shape, with a _Kingfisher_ and _Timber Wolf_ in the lead and a _Gargoyle_, _Highlander IIC_, and _Mad Dog_ behind. It opened fire and pummeled the vulnerable layer of rock between them and their targets while several Nighthawks decided to give their two cents about the situation.

It was confusing and hopeless, with the only options charging the new cave defenders and surely dying on their way up the clearing between both enemy forces, or changing direction and continuing this fruitless retreat that has only escalated in severity. Several members were for one option, several were for another.

Then the final revelation came in from Marx, _"Sir, we do not even know if the cave is travelable. And, once inside, navigating our way out without getting trapped or lost is a pipe dream."_

Suddenly, a new voice entered the conversation and silenced the rest of them, _"The caves are safe. And you can choke them off two hundred meters in with minimal weaponry."_

Thao instantly responded, _"Who the hell is this? What the--"_

"_This is a friend who just so happens to have full schematics of the local system and can guide you out of this mess."_

Then Marx hit Thao over a private channel while Ferra and Kim asked Kael for orders since they were still hidden to the west and may be useful somehow, _"A friend? Savashri! The Vipers are playing a trick on us."_

But then the voice continued, _"Julian Buhallin told me to meet you, and it looks like I am your only hope at surviving this."_

"Julian--?" The thought that Julian survived his ordeal with the snowmobile near 36 hours prior struck him hard enough to render him speechless.

Luckily, Kael Pershaw was not surprised enough to be ineffective, even if for just a moment, _"Thao, this is legitimate. Jacob, send your code to band foxtrot-whiskey-alpha-four-niner-eight-two-two-zero."_

And with that Thao slid further into his wash of confusion. _Jacob,_ he thought. It all seemed to roll together: Marshall, Dev Iler, the mountains, the caves, the devastating winter, Kael's caginess… _Jacob_. It was him, the man he murdered; or now, apparently failed to murder.

But he did not have time to dwell on that as his navigational computer auto-updated to show the complete cave layout for the next few kilometers. Upon first inspection, it looked to work out perfectly as an escape route. This was now the chosen plan of action, though he was still plagued with the issue of making it across the stretch ahead.

"Asano, can you snipe them out while Rainer, Ras, and Marx light them up from partial cover?"

"_Aff. I can try, no telling how much fire I will take though…" _He knew it was good enough. Being called on to save your unit at the expense of yourself: it was a clan warrior's calling if anyone ever heard of one.

With the assault 'mechs and Star Commander Marx pitching their 'mechs far enough into the open to counter the now incoming enemy fire, Asano lifted his torso up and started methodically blasting away at the 'mechs ahead, firing at full rate with the gauss rifles that generated little to no heat, especially in this cold.

But not two shots got off before the bulk of the Steel Viper forces behind showed how close they were by pummeling the rear of his 'mech relentlessly with focused fire. He was forced to retreat immediately because he knew he would be out of commission well before taking out any of the opposing star ahead.

"_Shit! It is no good!"_

"_We need to find a way to stall the cluster behind!"_

"…_or move the guys ahead…"_

Thao had had it. It was go-time. "Fine, we do it all." With disdain in his voice at having to make a call as bad as this, he continued, "On my mark, we charge. Hold nothing back."

There was a silence at that, with each member dealing with their feelings about it in their own way. Of course to die like this would be honorable in any other context, but they were dezgra, and held the key to exposing an abhorrent travesty of war that threatened to tear at the seams of their very clan. Their reservations were justified, and palpable.

They all waited in suspense for the order that would send them all into a blaze of glory, possibly for naught. And Thao started counting, "Three…"

"…two…"

His mouth was dry, and he was sure to not have his voice crack at the issuing of the most important order he was ever to give, "…one…"

He inhaled, keeping rhythm but mentally absorbing the weight of his words, "…mar--"

A scream invaded his head. Over the main comm. channel static erupted at max volume and morphed into an organic cry. Everyone paused, Vipers included as the sudden outburst tore its way into their minds simultaneously with it reaching the entire general frequency. It grew louder and increased clarity, forming a Falcon war cry laden with more heart and resonance than any they had ever heard. Confused, Thao looked around to identify it when the sounds of an engine slowly surfaced behind the scream whose intensity flared and exploded into a full blown sonic boom. Then another. Then a third…

Then the voice subsided and was morphed back into the high pitched whine of an engine overcoming nature, and Thao saw the clouds flash open above them in a ripple of unseen energy. Then a streak blazed out from the hole straight through the lead _Kingfisher _and _Timber Wolf _ahead of them_._ The 'mechs were instantly severed in half with their upper torsos jolting backward with the force of the impact and their legs toppling to the ground. Behind them was an explosion of massive proportions, obliterating the boulder unfortunate enough to be in the flight path of the wayward phenomenon accompanied with a delayed sonic roar of devastating effect pushing the remaining 'mechs away from the point of impact. Debris blew out so hard from the decimated boulder that it punished the remaining Viper 'mechs hard enough to knock them back on their feet which were already shuffling to accommodate the passing weight turbulence.

The mere shock of the disruption resulted in a short silence, which Kim and Ferra were eager to exploit. Opening up a barrage of weapons fire into the remaining Viper 'mechs finally regaining their center of gravity, they forced the world back into real time and pressed the charge, riding the natural shift in momentum.

With the _Summoners_ in the distance exposed, the Viper cluster behind tried to punish them with the concern of preserving their remaining comrades ahead to find those very 'mechs near the cave entrance disbursing in the chaos and the Nighthawks emerging in a defensive posture covering two mobile teams across the stretch and firing back with equal intensity. The Vipers were momentarily forced back on their heels. Though a massive ammo explosion encompassing at least 80 long range missiles gutted one of the pressing Falcon _Summoners_ and took it out altogether, the quick execution of the unit's extraction with its ability to sustain the disorientation abroad allowed it to finally disappear into the black void that was its new subterranean stronghold without further casualties.

For just a moment, the unthinkable happened. The Falcons regained the initiative and entered the cave with their elementals and remaining _Summoner _before the advancing Viper cluster could refocus itself. Star Colonel Paul Thibaudeau ordered their pursuit, but found the first internal cavern the Falcons so easily disappeared in to be closed off by the time his men reached the end of it.

He still, throughout the surge across the stretch after the ever-so-lucky Falcons questioned what he just witnessed moments ago from the sky. His target identifier was equipped with a recording device like all of them were, and while he ran he looked through the logs of the last minute. Only one designation came up: **JF-Vdl 005692**. Shaking his head, he realized that a Jade Falcon _Vandal_ aerospace fighter, one of the fastest in active service, just sacrificed itself in the most extreme display of awe he had witnessed in a long time. Where the other fighters of his unit were was a question he wanted answered next, and upon exiting the cave, he contacted his remaining star commanders to figure out just that.

* * *

Star Captain Gregors taxied his _Visigoth _to the refueling station the techs had set up on the pre-fabricated tarmac around the Iron Raptor. The rest of the 32nd Aerospace Support Wing was behind him, at least all the survivors of the last engagement anyway. He did a member-count and worked the sub-unit organizations through his head once more. With the techs automatically working to refit the needed craft with ground support configurations, he did not need to direct the activities below. Each pilot knew what to do and what kind of time table they were working with.

He wanted them up in the air as soon as field-structural repairs possible in under twenty minutes were completed, which started after the refueling and during the weapons' refit.

The techs worked hard in the darkness, utilizing flood lights, head lamps, and flairs around the tarmac to mark the end of the surface as it was near pitch black from above. Without the Iron Raptor activating its peak hull marker lights, Gregors' unit would have never seen the thing and known to avoid it without the ground lighting.

He asked the lead tech about Pilot Blaze, to be told he never arrived. Surprisingly, both him and the ground crew received no communiqué or updates from him since he broke formation, which was most concerning. So, as he waited he used the Iron Raptor's transmitter to patch a signal to Star Admiral Adrian Malthus on the Emerald Talon. His response was immediate.

"Star Admiral, did the orbital surveillance of the ground combat come through clearly?"

"_Neg, Star Captain. But I do have something interesting you may want to see."_

A file automatically downloaded to Gregors' interface after a few moments, and he thought it better to simply open it and see for himself what it was about in lieu of asking Adrian.

What he found was a long range sensor readout depicting the ground units and their relative positions of Thao's retreat. The cloud cover was so thick that actual visual data was impossible to obtain, but he did see Blaze's _Vandal_ cruise its way over the cloud canopy to the ground combat site and accelerate through the troposphere toward the ground at what looked like full throttle.

The sudden loss of signal from the craft indicated a crash. Gregors did not know exactly what happened, but he forced his mind to interpret the result to losing one more body. His count was now 21 operational fighters, four in questionable condition regarding combat. But his techs were no joke, and in short order he would know just how much firepower he would be riding into battle with.

* * *

Time was not in abundance, though the Nighthawks managed to quiet the world around them some, making things slightly more comfortable. The unit marched single file through the dark, cramped caverns to an access point that would connect it with the rest of the regional tunnel network. Having sealed their entrance behind them, there were only three cave openings left in the local system, with two only two hundred meters apart and facing each other in a small cove and the other two kilometers away facing some relatively flat land. Both sites were close enough to have a high probability of being secured by the Steel Vipers before they could make a hidden escape.

They kept their formation tight as each 'mech had a different shoulder profile and could not afford to graze the sides and tempt a cave-in. Damage assessments were done en route and radio chatter was limited to command staff only as they tried to piece together contingency plans in case they had to backtrack. It was confirmed that it was Pilot Blaze that came to their rescue, somehow exerting enough concentration to line his fighter up with not one, but two enemy battlemechs he could only see on telemetry at an incomprehensible speed. Why he chose to sacrifice himself and not simply open fire was beyond them, but they knew that if they survived this, they would find the reason, and honor his death properly.

"_Okay, keep going another six hundred meters around the bends and you will see another cavern, this one with a running stream on the right side. That is your target. Get across that threshold and contact me."_

"Aff." Thao responded to Jacob, who maintained radio contact to help them understand their geographical predicament. After another thirty meters or so, Thao felt a small tremor accompanied with a distant thunder.

"_What was that?"_ Bree asked from inside Kim's cockpit, where she had been hitching a ride since the initial ambush seemingly so long ago.

"_Felt like… a bomb?"_ Marx sounded more curious than worried, which was typical of his personality.

"_Do not get paranoid. Thao, you have been here before, quiaff? What are the seismic habits of this place?"_ Gretchen was probably the most optimistic, which was curious seeing as she had the most to lose from this thing entirely.

He stopped as another tremor reverberated through the granite walls and their 'mechs themselves. "I remember… it being calm…"

Then another one hit, and this one was loud. Suddenly, debris from the ceiling of the cavern started to powderize and fall on their cockpits. The already cramped confines seemed to instantly shrink in further as every pilot within held their breath. Then another one hit, just as loud as before, and a rock fell from the top onto an elemental below.

"_Okay! That is it! We need to move. I just got my head knocked over here!"_

"_Stand fast, Leif!"_ Star Commander Shaine kept is men in step, despite the weight of the new situation. _"We move when ordered. Captain?"_

"We make it to the network threshold. I will update you there." Thao started moving forward, knowing what was going on and hating every moment of it. That is when Gretchen Talasko voiced her concern over the command frequency.

"_This is not in the mountains proper, quiaff? That low plateau is giving them the perfect opportunity to bomb us in."_

"_But they have no way of gauging their success. They have no sensors on hand to penetrate the rock from outside." _Kael was already devising his own series of plans, Thao could hear it in his voice. It seemed that the years of studying under him had given him some insight into the half-machine that was his commanding officer.

"Either way, we cannot risk a cave-in. I am going to get us to that cavern and work it from there. Jacob, which is the quickest way southwest from there?"

A silence followed that was filled momentarily with another explosion. "Jacob?"

Then an ear splitting explosion boomed through the corridor, shaking the entire place and throwing several elementals in the rear from their feet. "Jacob! Shit. Star Colonel, I am noticing long range interference. If they do not know where we are then they made one hell of a guess." His frustration came out as he rounded the final corner expecting his world to open up, both with space and opportunity. But instead, he found himself face to face with a cloud of dust. He stopped and shined his spotlight around since his night vision was no good with the thick airborne debris and eventually made out a scene that made him curse whatever heaven doomed him this day.

"The tunnel is blocked. We need to turn back! Nighthawks, stop immediately and space yourselves out! Turn around and head back to the new nav point. Star Commander Shaine, you have point. Double time it!" There was no way he was chancing blasting his way through that mess. The energy used would most assuredly collapse the surrounding tunnels and bury his unit alive.

Luckily, his commanders were not stalled by such a setback. They immediately started formulating a new plan, _"Well, that plan is scrapped. Savashri…"_

"_Had they been here before? How would they know something like that would work? And what the hell are they bombing us with? Do they have artillery with them or something?"_

"_No. And they did not know this would work."_ Luckily, Kael Pershaw kept his bearing, and his calm was infectious, _"But with the defeats handed to the Viper Star Colonel, he is probably hard-pressed to generate results and is doing whatever he can to achieve them. Either way, we head back. There are only two exit points for us now, and we need to get out soon before we are buried in here."_

They finally started moving back with the elementals now in the lead and Thao in the rear as he took charge once again, "Fine. I was entertaining the thought of sending a decoy out while slipping past their main force and making for a quiet way to Renatia. It looks like they will not allow that to happen--" Another explosion rocked the corridor and they picked up their pace accordingly. The blast came from behind and some dust from more collapsed rubble pushed its way past Thao's _Night Gyr_ to be left there as he continued past, "It is settled then. We blow out of those exits and make them pay. Any survivors can carry out the objective."

"_Thao, not everyone knows the target or how to get to it,"_ Kael warned.

"Then send your private briefing package out to everyone to be opened if they survive the battle." He thought about what he was saying, and realized that if this was as bad as he thought it could get, then it would be the farthest thing from counter-productive. "It is not going to hurt, quiaff?"

A moment of silence foretold Kael's consideration of the plan, then everyone's data receiver lit up with a new file ordered not to be opened until post-combat operational planning.

Gretchen kept the ideas flowing as they moved along, grudgingly retracing the steps they had already made back to their awaiting enemy, _"They may have that Broadsword dropship bombarding us. We cannot take that out on foot."_

Then Bree stepped in, _"We may not need to. Put me on point and have me deploy outside first with a point of elementals. If Star Captain Gregors is going to show, we will need my spotting to utilize him. If not, then at least you have my eyes out there."_

That was promising. _If_ Gregors showed, but Thao had not heard from him since he left on his diversionary mission several hours ago. Oh, how they needed him now… But he hated the idea of her out in the cold again, alone, possibly face to face with a Steel Viper cluster without so much as a sidearm for defense. It was not that he did not want his previous rescue effort to be for naught, but for the same reason he underwent that effort in the first place. He wanted her to survive this, if anybody did.

But, as he imagined Julian's would, his brain succumbed to logic and realized that she was right. Its benefit to the unit and to the mission was much greater than its possible failure. As much as it pained him to admit it, "Understood. Nighthawks, make way for Mechwarrior Kim as she heads for the front. Shaine, assign her a point and send them to this entrance on the double."

Star Commander Shaine seamlessly complied, _"Copy that. Point five, latch onto the Summoner and grab the Star Commander. I want you jetting out of here ahead of us and securing ground for her as high as you can reach."_

Thao reached her over a direct frequency not caring that Mechwarrior Kim could hear it next to her in the small cockpit, "Bree…"

"_Yeah?"_

"When this is over--"

"_I know. Do not worry about me."_

"But I do worry about you. If I get anything out of this, I want it to be you. Okay?"

A short silence told him that she shared his concern and knew he wasn't good at this over the radio. But she did eventually reply, _"But the Me you want is the one on the ridge pulling her weight, right? We will deal with this afterward, but right now we have a war to win."_

"Aff. You take care."

"_Always."_

The elementals individually responded to Shaine's order as two of them jump jetted their way onto Kim's _Summoner_, which was overtaking the rest of the 'mechs in line in a near sprint, ever so careful of the insanely close granite wall. Bree lifted herself from the bobbing cockpit to be assaulted with a call of cold she had finally forgotten about. With the steam of her breath nearly obstructing her view, she held onto one of the cold armor suits that met her there as it embraced her with both arms in return. Then it shot off into the black void ahead and disappeared with the rest of its point. The maneuver was much more difficult to execute than it looked, being on the move the entire time. But the smoothness with which it succeeded was promising.

Another explosion made its way through the walls, this one was again close and sent more debris from the ceiling down on the traveling 'mechs. Two bumped into each other as they ran through the winding corridor, going much faster than Thao would have wanted. But he continued nonetheless, watching as sparks flew from the _Mad Dog's_ arm ahead of him as it scraped the cavern wall in passing. He kept his mind from the building pressure of their situation by focusing on the solution, "Okay: two sites, ten 'mechs. They are two kliks apart…"

"_Mechwarrior Ras will accompany me to the far exit. If the mass of the Viper unit is there, it will redeploy most of its troops to intercept you when you emerge from the primary site first and gives us a chance to down the remainder and move on to Renatia. If the mass is waiting at the primary site, it may redeploy to our location, thinning your opposition."_

Thao was not buying it, "They may also just send the _Broadsword_ over to blanket you and keep their manpower in front of the rest of us."

"_True. But if we send everyone to the same entrance, then we put all our eggs in one basket and risk it all at once." _Gretchen contributed, _"If we split down the middle, then we weaken each side enough to get obliterated on the spot at each location. Sending two may be just what they are not planning for."_ Kael was asking for a lot of firepower with Ras' _Warhammer IIC_, but Thao knew better than to argue. He may be the field commander of this operation, but Kael has long been known to see future events with more clarity than most historians do after the fact. And truthfully, he did not feel like arguing now, while running from a cold, lonely death in a subterranean pile of rubble; concentrating on keeping his 'mech from wavering into the too-close-for-comfort walls was taxing enough.

"Okay, you and Ras go to the second location. Godspeed. Gretchen, you follow me to the primary site."

"_Copy."_

"With two openings, we can have an initial force exit the first opening to start the party, and have some heavy firepower emerge from the second one once their backs are turned to shuffle them around."

"_True. But they will try to bottleneck the point units and take them out with focused fire. They will probably not shoot down each 'mech immediately to ensure the entire unit makes it out and into the open to prevent us from escaping again."_

"…which we can use to our advantage," he concluded, seeing where this was leading. No one else felt like cutting in, probably because if they weren't on the same train of thought, then they didn't come up with anything yet. "Heavy hitters in front to block for the second wave, while the second opening 'mechs pause to set the Vipers up before plugging them in the back."

"_My sentiments exactly,"_ Gretchen finished. It seemed that her knowledge of guerilla warfare was not entirely superior to his. Or he was just an incredibly quick learner, which was a thought that made her smile.

The unit continued hurriedly as the thunderous booms grew quieter behind them with distance. They were approaching the final junctions before the openings, and needed to be as sharp as ever when they emerged outside. It seemed that fate set them on a collision course with certain death, but at least gave them a chance to go down fighting. This was the showdown all their careers built to. The distant thought of a future objective seemed to fade even further as they fixed themselves on the head-on refusal they were about to play out. The combined focus was palpable.

"Okay, Gretchen, you and Weston are my surprise package; proceed to the second exit in the primary site. Rainer and Marx, you are with me up front forming the welcoming committee. Mechwarriors Kim and Carlis, you deploy behind us and take on the far units. Star Colonel Talasko, you deploy with Mechwarrior Weston shortly after Kim and Carlis appear behind me to hit them in the backs and turn their heads. Asano, you are last. You come out after Gretchen and punch every single round you have into their weak spots.

"They aim to wipe us out completely. I aim to show them exactly how dangerous we Falcon warriors can be with nothing to lose. Lay waste to them, and do not stop firing until either they are dead, or you are."

A single response came over the group comm., _"Seyla."_

* * *

It seemed as if time fast-forwarded to the exit. The unit split off and assembled in order of their planned deployment in the final recesses of the network before surging toward the portal leading to a black void as malevolent as their own bloodlust. They welcomed what awaited them with their fingers on the triggers of their apocalyptic horses. Their telemetry noted several Steel Viper 'mechs waiting outside, just as Thao predicted. The exact placement of the 'mechs was in question as the signal had the blips bounce around a bit on the screen, but they were out there, waiting. If they only knew the fury that was about to rain upon them…

Thao was the first to emerge with his eyes wide and his lungs pumping hard in anticipation. But nothing was there. The cove was surprisingly empty, a most definite buzzkill. After a few steps he stopped, scanning the area, letting his eyes adjust to the different level of darkness outside and his brain absorb the fact that his radar was littered with contacts though he saw none of them.

The Nighthawks were ordered to kill their searchlights on approach, which helped them gain some kind of initiative. He knew Bree was watching from her perch. She radioed no activity so far, which meant he was in the cove alone with his two starmates. _They have to be close,_ he thought to himself. _Ghosts…_

With the tension hitting a different level reflecting the unseen danger present, he started moving toward the opposite end of the cove where it pitched up slightly and more than likely opened up to an outer network of valleys they were all too familiar with by now.

The _Night Gyr_ stopped after 80 meters, again surveying the area. His telemetry showed dozens of contacts both inside and outside the cove, telling him they more than likely dropped decoy transmitters all over. That meant they were here previously, but he could not ruin his plan by deploying the rest of his men to charge the hill. He had to be patient and have faith in his strategy.

And that is when the corner of his eye caught some movement. Up on the hill to his right he thought he saw something. He squinted, as if it would help his view any, to find himself focusing on a large laser shattering the dark matter with which the night had been constructed and slamming into his 'mech, refracting the light around and nearly blinding him from the sudden contrast.

"Weapons free!" he yelled into his mic as he unloaded his _Night Gyr's_ arsenal into the Viper 'mech now sprinting down the hill and into the cove proper. His sensor readout bracketed twelve moving signals out of the mess of them scattered throughout the valley. With a few keystrokes, he was able to isolate those signals and visually subdue the others ones; giving him a proper threat readout.

Light and sound exploded from his 'mechs arms and chest as energy spiked toward the descending 'mech, now identified as a Steel Viper _Timber Wolf_. Half of his shots hit as PPCs surged across this plain of vision up the hill and into the wall of Viper units now charging his trio of Falcons.

The incoming Vipers engaged their search lights all at once, negating any night vision used with the white beams swinging around so randomly. But Thao just pressed the charge on his targeted _Timber Wolf_, cycling through his weapons' groups as quickly as his heat sinks could work with the cold to keep his heat in the green. "Group up! I do not care if they converge their fire! We need to get their attention away from the opening!"

The Falcons, each firing fanatically to keep pace with the incoming assault backed into the center, with the glow from Thao's _Night Gyr's_ laser heat sinks' reflected exhaust majestically illuminating them in a jade green. "Now! Deploy, deploy!"

Mechwarriors Kim and Carlis blasted out of the cave opening with everything they had, nearly stopping several Viper 'mechs on the left ridge with the sudden assault. They separated as the center trio disbursed and continued their heated attack. Several volleys of LRMs made their way over to Marx in his own _Timber Wolf_, slamming into his center torso and enshrouding him in a cloud of black smoke. But he emerged from it quickly, blasting away with his PPCs, one after another into the mass of Viper 'mechs concentrating their fire on him.

Another few moments and the Viper cluster would be close enough to have its back turned on the second opening… Thao kept that hole in his peripheral vision as he carefully cycled his weapons to avoid overheating, utilizing mostly his lasers and backing his autocannon into single-shot mode. Then a jolt kicked his concentration. Something just penetrated his right arm, sending a concerned signal through his neurohelmet and erupting his damage display into a flurry of warnings. It looked like the feed mechanism for his autocannon ammunition was out of commission.

His brain washed itself in relief as he systematically dumped the remaining ammo and kept a mental note that a single round was already loaded into the weapon's chamber, giving him a final shot when he needed it.

But the relief was short-lived as a Viper _Battle Cobra_ slammed into his 'mech, rerouting his mental energy into stabilizing his ride through his neurohelmet and turning to face the little bastard.

Mid-turn however, Gretchen appeared in her _Warhawk _and sent three PPC bolts into its back. He decided to move on to another target when his missile lock warning erupted and tried to overtake the rest of the sirens fighting for notice in his cockpit.

He turned just in time to see Rainer in his _Turkina_ shoulder ram some poor _Hellbringer_ as it neared, sending it aside and continuing his laser barrage with pinpoint accuracy. Even an SRM volley engulfed his right arm as it fired, but he continued like he was the only one out here with the utmost concentration.

Several of the Viper assault 'mechs turned to face Gretchen and Weston, who was putting on a laser light show of his own when multiple gauss slugs ripped through their rear armor and shredded their internal structures.

Thao could hear Bree in the background trying to update him with target information, or going on about something else. He was really not sure what she was saying since he was trying to avoid an angry _Dire Wolf_ as it opened up its own laser array in his direction before another Viper 'mech collided with him.

The impact actually helped him as it redirected his machine away from the leading shots from the _Dire Wolf_, resulting in the beams searing through the Steel Viper next to him instead. It continued on as if stunned from the impact and he engaged his jump jets to dodge an incoming wall of LRMs as they lit the night around him like fire demons rampaging through the battlefield.

"_Ahh shit! Engine critical! I am immobile!"_ Rainer yelled over the comm. as his _Turkina_ finally succumbed to the weight of the fire pouring into it. Few wondered why he wasn't ejecting as the now teetering assault 'mech turned to get one final shot off into the face of a Viper _Executioner_ as several missile volleys sailed in to finish it off. The entire front of the _Turkina _erupted in flame as the missiles encapsulated it. The force of the mass explosion sent it backward in the air, giving those that were looking a glimpse of the desiccated cockpit as it hit the ground a final time, never to arise again.

And then finally Thao saw what he wanted. A Steel Viper cockpit soared over the cove, abandoning its mech and leaving that much opposing firepower silent. With that it was an even kill ratio, at least when 'mechs are concerned. Out of memory cycling through the available targets, his unit was inflicting significant damage to the Vipers, but not enough to drop any of them.

But then he found the perfect candidate for the Nighthawks' next victim. An enemy _Gargoyle_ must've suffered an ammo explosion as its side torsos were gutted, though it was still firing at Asano's _Stone Rhino_ with its remaining small laser. While it seemed stupid to channel one's energy on such a minute threat, he needed to cut their numbers down to force their commander to alter his tactics and give Thao a chance to put them on their heels.

With a clear line of fire and his pulse lasers selected, he lined his shot up and cursed when another 'mech crossed his view. Behind it the _Gargoyle_ had moved, which forced Thao to realign himself, taking more time. With him struggling to finish his target off, he subconsciously questioned his decision to dedicate himself to taking out the _Gargoyle_ when other 'mechs posed more danger though needed more firepower to put down.

And before he was able to pull the trigger, an autocannon cluster round hit him in the back, finishing off his rear right torso armor and forcing his head over to the damage readout to ensure everything else was okay for the moment. Next to the readout were his sensors, which showed something _big_ approaching.

For a moment his world went silent as the roar of a dropship challenged the sonic importance of everything beneath it. The Steel Viper _Broadsword_ returned and lowered itself into position to hover behind the fighting and take aim with its downright scary nose mounted weapons. Bree had the best view, almost being under it when it stopped, enveloping her in a shell of mechanical humming as it stabilized itself.

The first PPCs erupting from the dropship buried themselves into Carlis' _Mad Dog_ as she was busy avoiding the combined medium laser assault from a _Kingfisher _ahead. The 60 ton 'mech was forced forward with the weight of the energy nailing it from behind, right into a massive missile volley from a distant _Crossbow_ lending its arsenal to the fight. The explosions peppered the upper torso and blew through the sides, emptying her machine of any internal structure and engine protection. Her cockpit cracked open to reveal her ejection seat burning its way skyward as a follow-up volley from the _Crossbow_ enveloped it. She screamed as the swarm of fire approached, it being dramatically cut short with a flare of white and scarlet so small in the wash of light that it unknowingly represented the plight of the unit as a whole.

"_Out of SRM ammo, and my pulse lasers are fried!! I am sticking to my PPC--!"_ Marx's transmission was cut short as his chassis was rocked with autocannon rounds. The armor warped and pitted with the impacting shells and he stepped backward before another shot ripped the jutting missile launcher from his torso and gouged an opening in the armor wide enough to expose multiple bundles of moyomer and coolant piping.

Thao cursed inside his head when he looked away to verify the location of that Viper _Executioner_ that was firing at him. He knew the sound all too well, and didn't even blink at Marx's ejection seat rocketing from its housing. This was _not_ going well, as they had only taken down a single Viper 'mech while losing men at an unacceptable rate.

With the deep thud of Marx's lifeless _Timber Wolf_ hitting the ground, Thao took a microsecond to ensure at least one of his men would leave this alive. Looking up into the sky to track the small streak of yellow leaving the battlefield, he saw something that instantly sent a smile across his face, and even a laugh from the base of his gut.

With a sudden and much needed entry to the scene, Star Captain Gregors and twenty other aerospace fighters whooshed overhead, dropping a curtain of light on the rear Viper 'mechs and turning the heads of everyone present. The satisfying image of two Viper 'mechs ejecting their pilots overhead next to the smoldering armor of several more scorched chassis slowly trying to recover was welcomed, but short lived however, as the enemy _Broadsword_ corrected its aim to address the new aerial threat.

"_Need some help?"_ Gregors asked as he turned wide for another approach.

"Good God yeah! That dropship is killing us!" Thao refocused on the 'mechs ahead now seemingly concerned with the returning aerospace wing. A few shots searing into unsuspecting 'mechs was very satisfying to a clan warrior who has seen what he has the last few days. And a few more successful shots would be considered progress.

"_Sascha! Take Bravo Wing and your Scythas and rip that dropship a new asshole! Charlie points four and five, you are on me! Bree, keep the targets coming!"_

"_Copy that!"_ Bree gave Gregors targets that were at the moment far enough away from any Falcon 'mechs that they could be safely engaged. With her targeting and Gregors' coordination, the battle quickly leveled off and the remnants of the Steel Viper's 195th Striker Cluster suddenly realized how deep they had dug themselves.

* * *

Two kilometers away, Kael Pershaw emerged from his opening at full speed, expecting enemy contacts in the vicinity. But there were none.

He slowed his pace a little as he looked around, seeing in the distance the Steel Viper dropship hovering over the battlefield marked with a constant display of flashing light illuminating the low clouds above. The cloud cover was so dense that it absorbed most of it, eerily subduing what was most assuredly an epic battle. But it mattered not. If he could make it out of the area unchallenged, then he would have a chance to leave his own final footnote in the history of his clan. Not that he yearned for glory in the exposure of a devious, almost like-minded Loremaster of another clan, but he would take what he could get if he did not die a fiery death in his cockpit like he felt he should have so many years ago.

Ras tried to keep up in his _Warhammer IIC_, slowly lagging behind as Kael surged ahead slightly. He was trying to do his part so well that he thought little of the valley parallel to their route on their left, just far enough away to evade radar coverage.

Ahead the valley pitched to the right, nearly crossing their path if they failed to deviate from it. And it was there that Kael gave him the order he expected almost 90 seconds ago. _"Go weapons hot! Contacts…!"_

Emerging together, four Steel Viper omnimechs raced over the valley crest onto the plain him and Kael traversed, moving forward to intercept. Kael's _Hellbringer_ never slowed down, failing to recognize its inferior armor and weighing its chances of survival on its bizarre blend of firepower.

Ras was just out of range of his PPCs when Kael lit his off together, undoubtedly cresting the acceptable heat threshold, but enjoying the cool rush of air tending to the barrels making the heat sinks' job that much easier. In no time he lit another synchronized blast of piercing blue and white energy spiraling into the 'mech next to the one he previously punished. Even with his targeting computer Kael was shocking the warriors present with his accuracy in a full run as the return fire narrowly missed the 'mech weaving in an evasive pattern.

Finally the _Ice Ferret_ and _Linebacker_ were able to trap Kael out in the flat while the Viper _Warhawk_ took aim with its arm mounted large lasers at a distance and the _Nova_ jump jetted diagonally around the combat to intercept Ras.

Ras pointed his _Warhammer IIC_ straight for Kael, trying to contain the combat and give them another target to spread their damage to, hopefully giving Kael's _Hellbringer_ an little more time to do its thing. The _Nova_ however, had other plans and ripped an alpha strike off at Ras' legs, darkening their armor as he chugged ahead.

He twisted his torso in response to return fire at the pesky _Nova_ without losing stride. His initial PPC strike missed wide as the medium 'mech jumped out of the way at the last moment. But he gauged its landing spot and made sure no less than five medium pulse lasers greeted it when it finally touched down. The shots hit its arm and forced it to step back to absorb the impact while its shoulder joint collapsed in on itself.

With one dangling arm, the _Nova_ wasted no time recovering to return fire at the Falcon, appropriately leading its target and hitting all of its shots. But its pause to aim reminded it of the weight difference between it and its opponent as the _Warhammer IIC _punched another duo of PPCs into its base and followed up with an array of laser fire across its upper torso, evenly laying notable damage across the board.

The _Nova's_ retaliation was miniscule though, just searing the armor on the Falcon 'mech's leg while the _Warhammer IIC_ itself never got to enjoy the result of its parting shot as it penetrated the lower torso and ruptured the gyro housing, slowing the _Nova_ down to a crawl before turning to crash Kael's party.

* * *

Kael flew around and fired his weapons with a glee he had not experienced in decades. The sheer power one felt with 65 tons of death at their command was indescribable. Sure, he thought he was reacquainted with that rush the day before when wrapping his brain around losing a possession trial, but for some reason these odds really got his blood flowing.

Being a man of calculations, studying the body language and actions of others to dissect their minds and predict their motives has really made him forget how simple war can be. Target there, squeeze the trigger, check your 3 o'clock, damage readout, heat buildup, fire again, twist your torso; it was all so automatic it would scare anyone unfortunate enough to have never tasted the aural sweetness of turning an enemy 'mech into useless scrap before its warrior, the apex of his clan's training and tradition, even knew what happened. It was natural, and by God was it fun.

The _Ice Ferret_ had never faced a _Hellbringer_ with a pilot like this before, using an increased firing rate thanks to the polar winds and near suicidal maneuvering that coaxed you into exposing your vulnerable side time and time again. It was like chess in fast-forward, and in no time its fellow _Linebacker_ was wasting its ammunition watching its comrade get pasted like a cardboard cutout at the end of a firing range. Since Kael was keeping his target between the _Linebacker_ and himself, it continually fired LRM volleys off to safely pummel the Falcon without damaging its starmate. Kael's anti missile systems were making short work of the volleys though, resulting in more damage to the Viper warrior's pride than anything else.

Kael keyed his targeting computer to isolate the _Ice Ferret's_ left torso containing the housing for the arm sporting both its large laser and one of its missile racks. He pummeled it with alternating PPCs and medium lasers until it had a gaping wound large enough to fit its own arm in. He could not enjoy the finishing blow though as Ras' _Warhammer IIC _entered the fray and rocked the medium 'mech with its PPCs, having them snake their way through the open hole Kael just made to pulverize the freshly damaged _Ice Ferret's_ engine heat sinks while destroying the exposed engine shielding altogether. But while the surprise attack nullified the Viper medium by negating its ability to move or fire, Ras instantly absorbed the incoming fire intended for Kael from the distant _Warhawk_.

The Viper assault 'mech fired its autocannon at the same time as its large lasers, watching the beams travel at the speed of light to hit the passing _Warhammer IIC_ in the shoulder and the conventional shell lag behind just enough to crush the cockpit following.

In an instant the Falcon assault 'mech stopped and hunched over slightly, becoming a monolith in the center of a continuing conflict. The sudden near one-hit kills inflicted here were astounding, and seriously shifted the tempo of the combat.

But Kael, while mentally accommodating the loss of his wingman into his combat strategy, immediately used the dead 'mech as a shield from the _Warhawk's_ follow-up attack. He then reversed his direction abruptly, continuing to use the dead _Warhammer_ shield to obscure his opponents' view and pop out behind the searching _Linebacker_.

With all of his lasers and machine guns, Kael ravaged the rear armor of his target before turning to face the incoming _Nova_ that seemed intent on exerting its influence despite its inability to move faster than a crawl. He zoomed over to it, sacrificing armor in his right torso to its autocannon fire in exchange for a firing solution.

With the tone of his Streak SRM launcher telling him he had a lock, he launched six missiles off at it before getting slammed in the shoulder by fire from the distant _Warhawk_ that he hoped would not be so skillful. The _Nova's_ exposed torso took another hit and failed to supports its weight long enough to send it to the ground. With Kael off to finish the _Linebacker_ and force the _Warhawk_ to close ranks to engage, it tried to get up, but its gyro finally gave out and it fell, damaging it enough to render it useless.

A new warning blared in Kael's ear as he forced his _Hellbringer_ over to the previous killing ground to finish his work. That last shot took out his anti-missile systems and hit the wiring to one of his machine guns. Shaking his head in what seemed to be an acceptable loss for taking out the _Nova_, he ran until the black barrier of the dead _Warhammer_ blocked his view of the _Linebacker's_ search light. He knew once again the standing shell was going to help him set up his next attack, as the approaching _Warhawk_ finally got within comfortable range to use its missiles.

Behind the dead _Warhammer_ Kael saw the light billowing out from the propelling rockets illuminate the snow covered ground below as it traversed the void between him and his opponent. But they were locked onto him, and he timed his stride just right so the missiles collided with the _Warhammer_ suddenly in their trajectory. The resulting explosion was bright, as all the light forced its way around the dead chassis to form a powerful silhouette of the 80 ton statue before it toppled over from the force of the blast.

The moment it lowered itself from Kael's view he fired all of his weapons into the back of the maneuvering _Linebacker_, shredding what was left of its armor and rear heat sink components connecting to the engine, shutting it down for what would hopefully be the remainder of the battle. The fact that it could very well return to pin him between itself and his new dueling partner was a thought he stored away for the time being, forcing his mind to concentrate on the gargantuan, hunched figure lumbering its way around the flaming _Warhammer_ strewn on the ground and the pause he needed to take to cool off from that last attack.

Its searchlight bobbed up and down with its movement, telling Kael of any speed changes just by its visual rhythm. He in turn responded by keying his targeting computer in to both its center torso and left knee, foregoing the traditional tactic of attacking its arms and negating its main arsenal for a more graceful, one-two combination approach.

They exchanged shots for a bit, with his torso taking the brunt of the damage. Circling both the burning wreckage of the downed Falcon 'mech and the inconsequential _Linebacker_, both 'mechs tried to trick the other by double stepping, or turning just enough to throw off the lead of their aim as shot after shot rang out in nail biting fashion. One 'mech was going to give before the other, it was just a matter of who would slip up first.

Kael had the harder time of it though, with his rather even fire exchange dramatically shifting against him as a well-timed missile volley gutted his left torso. In an instant he lost his entire laser array, his targeting computer, active probe, ECM suite, and the use of his left arm containing one of his two most powerful weapons.

In an attempt at salvaging the fight, he lit off both his machine guns at a constant rate of fire while launching the remainder of his short range missiles at the near victorious _Warhawk_. He kept it up, with the missiles hitting its knee and upper leg and the small caliber ammunition slowly chewing away at its center torso armor.

Then it all nearly happened at once. With his own legs in the red, his final missile volley successfully crippled the Viper assault 'mech's knee, rendering it nearly immobile. But his machine gun ammunition ran dry well before he could penetrate the torso. With the enemy 'mech's sensors still functional, it was more than capable of putting Kael out of his misery, which it attempted without a moment's hesitation.

Losing himself in the moment, Kael hit the apex of a warrior's essence. He became one with his 'mech and sensed the incoming danger for what it was before its impact. The final discharge of the _Warhawk's_ large lasers missed a sidestepping target, which thrust its front leg in and squared its weight behind its good arm to smash it through the center cockpit assembly, pulverizing everything inside, including the Steel Viper warrior just realizing she had missed her shot. She was crushed before her brain even processed the thunderous explosion of shrieking metal that echoed over the barren plain and off the mountain wall in the distance.

Kael, inhaling for the first time in what seemed like a minute, pulled his now useless arm from under the only intact piece of covering armor the Viper 'mech could claim and gathered himself as it fell over into the snow beside him. The adrenaline overtook what was left of his natural body and though it was hard for him to accept, he needed a moment to recover and focus on his next course of action.

But the breathing just distracted him from the _Linebacker_ rising from the dead behind him and opening fire with all it had into his barely standing 'mech's back.

Blown forward with the impact, Kael's brain stirred with the effort to regain balance and turn to face his final opponent. He didn't even look at his damage readout, as he knew he had no weapons or ammo left at his disposal and even lacked the ability to lift his own arms and bludgeon the defiant beast again taking aim. Kael Pershaw's career 'mech pitched itself around and leaned forward in what run it had left in it. It charged the _Linebacker_ as it launched its final missile volley right into the _Hellbringer's_ gut.

With a lethal jolt and a wash of heat, Kael's cockpit housing was forcefully blown inward in a hail of glass and shrapnel. Metallic fragments exploded through the floor and surrounded him, as if to daze his mind in his final moments. Not that anyone could see it, but a smile formed under his mask and protruded out across the exposed part of his face. He had finally lived again, and will die the dream of every clan warrior.

His life support monitor flat lined and his 'mech went limp with the signal cut from the neurohelmet. The 'mech stopped cold and stood there a few moments, steaming in the cold.

The _Linebacker_ turned to pick up its fellow pilots abandoning their husks, but paused just a second as the late _Hellbringer_ finally fell behind it. A moment was observed to honor the death of a fine warrior as the famous Loremaster Kael Pershaw's final mark upon this world lay prone in a field of burning debris reflecting his last moments.

And there it would lie, soon forgotten in a war that should have never been.

* * *

Two separate battles heated the surface of Marshall only 2,000 meters away, with one filling the sky and the other littering the ground. Both were waged with equal intensity though Star Commander Sascha's efforts at pushing the Steel Viper _Broadsword_ dropship away from the ground conflict were successful enough that the damage from each was contained therein.

The dropship itself was outnumbered by the smaller craft eleven to one initially, with its superior armament quickly trying to even the numbers, but only taking out four fighters before its own damage accumulated to concerning levels. Its pilot maneuvered as recklessly as she could, nearly barrel-rolling the 1,900 ton craft and sending it vertical in attempts to shake the small swarm of pursuers. But they kept coming anyway, most of them heavy fighters with their own formidable arsenal specially known for excelling in exactly this situation.

The port side hull was finally breached by a pair of _Scytha_ using their PPCs like heated scalpels. Multiple coolant systems and life support systems were damaged as a result, but the areas sealed off quickly enough to avoid any casualties. The orders were to stay until the Falcon unit was destroyed, entirely, leaving no trace of its bandit existence. But while the dropship may have just dropped another Falcon craft from the sky, raising its kill count to five, its gaping wound was just the beginning of its end. Every time it turned it found itself facing another incoming formation. Every time it sealed a breach another one screamed for attention through the damage sensors. All it could do at this point was stay out here to keep the heavy fighters occupied so they don't contribute to the ground battle. It was a miserable role to play, but orders were orders, and only the news of their crisis report making it back to the Renatia base for reinforcements sparked any hope at their possible deaths being avenged.

* * *

The Steel Vipers on the ground were faring better, at least when considering the pure 'mech on 'mech damage resulting. Even though they outnumbered the Falcons ten to five right after their aerospace support showed up, they were slowly being picked apart by the painful distraction above and the lethal consequences below.

Much to the Nighthawks' chagrin, the unit's close air support could not engage as freely as it wanted because the enemy was completely intertwined with their trothkin on the battlefield. They had to wait until one of the Nighthawks managed to separate a Viper 'mech from the main fighting to swoop in and deflower it in the way only strafing fighters can. This significantly decreased their potential contribution, but they made sure to leave any stragglers a mangled heap of useless debris, lifting what weight they could from their mechwarrior counterparts.

Elementals separated in points, forming near downed 'mechs to blend with the debris and completely conceal themselves in the random shadows while letting the electrical and metallic components fuzz their radar cross-section. They had successfully latched on to two passing Steel Viper 'mechs this way, downing one and seriously damaging another before again disappearing into the impenetrable curtain of night. It was slow and tricky, but they did their part nonetheless.

* * *

Thao had focused his attention on a Steel Viper _Marauder IIC_, doing his best to try and balance its firepower as he lost his autocannon early in the battle and had some endo steel ruined with a heat sink disabled in his exposed left torso. What he had to his advantage though was jump jets, and though the ground was covered in a layer of snow, he took every chance he could to ensure he outmaneuvered the fresher _Marauder IIC_ known for its simplistic but devastating weapons load out.

He quickly jumped, curling his legs enough to propel his _Night Gyr_ more laterally than upward behind another pair of fighting 'mechs. With the _Marauder IIC_ avoiding the risk of hitting one of his own comrades, Thao was able land with his PPCs charged and firing, scoring just one of two hits, but forcing his target to momentarily re-align its own aim.

"_Keep it right there! I need another four seconds…"_ Bree contacted him from her elevated position over her communicator to help him set his opponent up for a strafing run from above.

"Those seconds had better go quick; because it only takes 1.5 to discharge--" And he swallowed his words as his zoomed view showed the _Marauder IIC's_ PPC barrels glow from the inside as the charging coils were given the command to release their burden. The close up view was probably not the greatest idea Thao had, but ended up spectacularly cinematic as two _Jagatai_ unloaded their combined four PPCs and four large pulse lasers across the space occupied by the Viper 'mech, searing deep canals in the recently exposed rock surface and through the upper armor of the machine itself. The residual energy from the particle bolts streamed over parts of the _Marauder IIC_, keeping it visible as it long ago turned its search light off and attempted to disappear from the visual spectrum altogether.

While telemetry was working in these close quarters, without the lights nothing short of weapons' fire or internal explosions showing through the seams of their armor exposed the fighting 'mechs for what they were. Part of Thao had wished the Viper _Broadsword_ had stayed overhead to help light the field with its thrusters, but the smarter part of his brain told him it was best to be distracted by the larger half of his aerospace unit.

The _Marauder IIC_ seemed to speed up after the attack, possibly to avoid a follow-up run from the fighters. But tripped shortly after it caught stride, possibly catching its foot on the raised side of the ditch carved by the lasers moments before.

He heard Bree over the unit's frequency routing the fighters around to assist with another engagement, _"Alpha point five, engage new target at heading one-eight-zero. Acknowledge..."_

"_Acknowledged. Rerouting to one-eight-zero. Confirm target: Warhawk."_

"_Aff. Watch for friendly Warhawk in close quarters designate Juliet Fox-trot Golf Tango-four, over."_

"_Copy that: Danger Close. Alpha five, out."_

Suddenly Thao got hit in the back repeatedly by laser fire. His sensors showed a _Stormcrow_ behind him opening up and shearing off what was left of his armor. So he jump-jetted to his right and turned mid-air, landing with a clear view of his new target. He saw moyomer in the legs exposed to the world from its previous combat before a stray laser seared past his cockpit from another engagement to momentarily blind him. More laser hits pummeled his 'mech and penetrated his front right torso, blowing through another heat sink.

"Fuck!" he yelled as he finally used his last autocannon shell he had been saving to give the _Stormcrow_ something to chew on while he regained his bearing.

"_Star Captain! My heat sinks are at 50 and I took a lot of engine damage! I killed my auto-shutdown sequence, but this rig can go at any moment…!"_ Incoming weapons fire immediately followed the sentence over the comm.. The pilot sounded panicked, much as anyone would in a sauna of a cockpit controlling an unresponsive 'mech.

That is when Thao saw the _Marauder IIC_ get up far to his left and fixate itself on him again. He had to think fast lest he be sandwiched between both it and the _Stormcrow_.

So he ran, pushing his 'mech to its limits, forcing the _Marauder IIC_ to lead him appropriately and turned so that angle would set it on course with the _Stormcrow_ on his other side following him as well. He glanced quickly at the top-down view of the battlefield with the red blips representing the units in their simplistic glory to confirm the approaching angle and closed his eyes when he straightened his head to subconsciously _feel_ the timing.

Tapping his foot pedals, he send the _Night Gyr _sailing into the air, catching the first of the _Marauder IIC's_ PPCs in the left foot, but enjoying the damage readout as it reflected both of his enemies shooting each other and inflicting significant damage. The _Marauder IIC _again fell over as the bulk of the shots fired from its fellow _Stormcrow_ engulfed its right leg and forced it off balance on the unstable terrain it just attempted to vacate.

With the assault 'mech on its heels, Thao instinctively turned to face the _Stormcrow_ and landed with his weapons blazing, continuing to pump shot after shot into the stunned omnimech until it suffered an internal ammo explosion and ejected its pilot.

With his view in the left direction he noticed a Falcon _Stone Rhino_ hibernating in the distance. "Asano!"

He waited while turning to face the _Marauder IIC_ that seemed to have it in for him. "Asano, report!"

"_I think he blacked out,"_ Bree informed him.

"Ahh, shit." He somehow completely lost track of the _Marauder IIC_. He swept his search light over the area he remembered it falling in to find nothing but broken snow. Then an explosion to his right forced him to squint to maintain focus when several successive impacts sent his damage readout screaming to life.

Ahead he saw a Steel Viper _Dire Wolf_ in all its horrible glory unloading its autocannons right into his lower torso. Gretchen appeared to its right and fired a pair of PPC bolts across its surface, missing it but successfully grabbing its attention while a point of fighters screamed overhead.

The general communications were still coming in, maintaining the maximum level of chaos imaginable, _"Alpha one, this is Charlie five teamed up with four. We are heading in hot for the Naga on the north ridge!"_

"_Copy that"_ Gregors replied.

Then Bree added, _"Beware of that Black Python! It shot down two fighters already!"_

"_Acknowledged."_

The Nighthawks were coordinating fairly well despite the chaos. But finally, his own 'mech gave out. Feeling gravity take hold, he again tapped his foot pedals and engaged his jump jets so that when he does collapse he could do it out of the main fire zone.

As he ascended he saw Gregors and his wingman in their _Visigoths_ flying low to finish off the _Marauder IIC_ he so badly wanted to claim. All he could identify was the explosion of light that was their nose lasers discharging and the long streak of fading heat from their afterburners as they hugged the ground and had their weapons literally raise the Viper 'mech from its feet to slam it on its back for good, leaving the hole burrowed through the center of its torso dripping with melted remains while still glowing red from the concentrated heat.

At the apex of Thao's jump, his missile lock sensor made itself heard as his screens flashed red. Now in the air with no thrust left and a busted gyro to land on, he was completely helpless. _Nothing could shoot down a volley from here,_ he realized as he frantically twisted his head back and forth in search for the threat.

Then the tone changed to indicate a launch whlie another communication came in from the fighters, their voices accompanying the sound of their weapons leveling their target, _"Shit! It just got a volley off! Looks like arti--"_

But Bree cut them off, _"Thao! You have incoming artillery missiles! Eject now!"_

In a flash his world cut silent. The screens flashed, his body temperature spiked unbelievably high, and Bree's concern echoed in his mind, being the last to dissipate. The substance of the echo emotionally charged his body as he reached for the ejection button and crushed it in one smooth motion, not for a moment preparing himself for the cold rush of air and imminent explosion that would follow below.

But he did not get out in time. He heard the assembly locks disengage and the seals blow right before his world was shaken from him. The explosion was so loud it actually gelled with Bree's voice in his head, forming one final cry of unimaginable intensity to send him away from this world.

* * *

Gretchen was stuck between a rock and a _Dire Wolf_, with no way out. She continued firing to the best of her ability, but with her 'mech's right arm scrapped somewhere behind her and the cockpit glass stress-cracked from a missile that narrowly missed earlier but forced a temperature differential bad enough to run lines across her view port, she was relying almost completely on her sensors for targeting. Forced to ignore her targeting reticle in the main view, she instead had use the stationary one in her composite view display, which was never as accurate as the regular one. She just hoped she was hitting, which she doubted since the damage readout on the _Dire Wolf_ had yet ot show any damage.

After taking out three enemy units already, two of whom were teaming up on her and focusing fire, she was negated to more of a distraction role. Now the Nighthawks needed her firepower and she couldn't produce.

The _Dire Wolf _seemed to have lost interest in her and lumbered forward to her right while she identified the remaining two blips on her screen as a _Kingfisher_ and a _Black Python_. She was almost within range of the _Black Python_ and threw her throttle lever forward toward it while trying to contact Star Commander Bree to get some air power on it.

But Bree wasn't answering. She tried several more times, but there was nothing. She told herself she would wonder if Bree was killed on her perch after the battle was over, hoping that she wasn't.

"_Weston, this is Kim. I am heading for the Kingfisher."_

"_Gotcha. I do believe I have this Dire Wolf's full attention…"_ Weston struggled as the Steel Viper commander methodically calculated his movements. The majority of his weapons were gone as the only things he was able to keep intact from the beginning of the engagement were his legs and the medium pulse lasers in his left torso. Lucky for him, his _Glass Spider_ had a narrow enough profile to evade some of the incoming fire now graciously bestowed upon him. The real thing he had going for him though was the small line of elementals huddled behind Rainer's downed _Turkina_. He plotted his path to cross right behind them and bait the enemy assault 'mech close enough for them to work their magic.

* * *

Kim made way in her _Summoner_ toward the _Kingfisher_, alternating fire to both keep its attention away from Weston and not breach her heat threshold. She too had little to work with to bring her opponent down, with just a large and medium laser for offense. Unfortunately, she did not have enough heat sinks to comfortably keep them both going at their full rate of fire.

Luckily, she knew how to multitask, "Hey, you guys still with me?"

"_Alpha five inbound. That you, Kim?"_

"Aff, I am keeping the _Kingfisher_ at three-two-niner occupied. A pinpoint strike would sure hit the spot right about now…"

"_No can do on the pinpoint. But we can strafe it. Just stay clear of the immediate area!"_

"Good enough for me," she replied, figuring they were at a lower altitude and it would take longer to climb and realign to accommodate her specific request.

She circled the _Kingfisher _wide, making it walk laterally along the base of the steep, snow covered hill. The return fire suddenly intensified, making her back up and twist her torso to protect her 'mech's good arm behind what was left of its torso. Piece by piece each shot did more damage, and her readout was ticking down consistently as the _Kingfisher's_ rate of fire was consistent. She was five shots from losing engine shielding.

Four shots.

Three.

Her heat spiked and she attempted to blind the relentless 'mech with her searchlight, trying to aim it right at the 'mech's cockpit. But she couldn't find it in time and she got hit again. Two hits…

Then another one. And, right before she went down, the _Kingfisher_ stopped and looked up. Above were two _Batu_ fighters swooping in low to formally introduce themselves. They made a perfect arc and stayed in formation beautifully; right until the end.

And the Viper's pre-emptive fire disrupted the point fighter as its shot rung wide on its pass and its wingman barely singed the tip of its target's arm and rendering their attack useless.

But Kim's search light did find something. A large boulder holding a veritable mountain of snow in its own right in place rested right behind the Steel Viper 'mech that was now turning to finish her off.

With both of her weapons simultaneously, she nailed the bottom of the boulder and shattered the base with the heat of the lasers, forcing it over and releasing all the snow above it. The sudden agitation disrupted the rest of the slope, and before the _Kingfisher_ knew it, the entire world collapsed on it, making it disappear instantly under at least 25 meters of compacted snow.

* * *

Gretchen had been trying to chase the _Black Python_ down with little success as it seemed to want to help the _Dire Wolf_ finish Mechwarrior Weston off first. Though it didn't make sense to her, she kept after it anyway, missing her first shot and realigning. Then she fired again to try and turn it around, but missed again.

The frustration began to fill the cockpit as she scowled and focused all her energy on pinpointing the phantom spot on her model display to finally get a hit.

Her comm. system was recently damaged, so she had no way to contact anyone. Coordination was a dead concept now as even aiming was a challenge too big to tackle.

She followed the _Black Python_, finding the right angle of interception to get her into range of her remaining PPCs. With the _Dire Wolf_ toying with Weston's _Glass Spider_ the way it was, she only had one good shot at this. Because it would only take one good hit from the _Black Python_ to either finish him off, or set the _Dire Wolf_ up for a definite killing blow. With that in mind she aimed, focused, held her hand still and inhaled, held her breath to keep her wrist from moving, and squeezed the trigger.

The bolt hit as the damage readout flashed and showed an armor decrease. She screamed in excitement as it turned to face her instead of Mechwarrior Weston, but then realized what a predicament she caused.

Fortunately for her, she did not have any more moments to dwell in the mess she made for herself, as the _Black Python_ opened fire with its pulse laser array and instantly sent her engine critical with multiple direct hits.

The ejection seat kicked in quick, thankfully distancing her from the new myriad of warning sirens flooding her cockpit now below as a shock of cold hit her skin and an increased G-force pulled her into her seat. The world turned to black as the only thing now visible below was the follow-up salvo of lasers burning its way from the _Black Python_ into the critical mass of her fusion engine and erupting through its back for good measure.

As it finished its final barrage at her 'mech, gravity sharply gripped her with hands of iron and nearly tore her in half as a wash of noise accompanied a violent pull that threatened to rip her from her harness and launch her over the black expanse without the company of her ejection seat.

In the ensuing vertigo, she never saw the pair of _Jagatai_ that just narrowly missed her on their descent launch enough long range missiles at the _Black Python_ to hammer its front armor so bad that it forced half of it through the 'mech's internals itself, resulting in what could be described as a partial 'mech implosion.

* * *

Weston's world had been tumbling downhill for at least five minutes now, which seemed like five lifetimes when you're being hunted down by a 100 ton walking mountain of death. What internals he had moments ago were scattered across the snow behind him, and what chance he had at surviving this plan of his left the building long before he knew where the door was himself.

When all else failed, he just continued to chug toward the downed _Turkina_, slowly guiding the mammoth that was picking him apart like a child pulls the wings from a fly where he needed it to go. The problem was, the angle was off, and he was getting way too close to the thing for comfort.

"Are you ready yet? He is right here!" He tried to get the elementals to commence their attack now, which had not happened yet for some reason.

"_Neg! He is not close enough! We cannot see him! He will pick us off at range if we are not right next--"_ Power to some of the instruments in his cockpit went out with violent sparks, including life support, the ejection circuit, and the search light controls. Suddenly the world outside went completely dark and the temperature in his cockpit rose exponentially, making it hard to breathe.

He had no way of telling the men on the ground what was going on in there, and he just hoped that when the _Dire Wolf_ did kill him, he did it with a cockpit hit to spare him the agony of being cooked alive.

But, to his dismay, upon getting close enough to actually _see_ the _Dire Wolf_ without lights he noticed it lowering its left arm like it was going to uppercut him and thrust it into his 'mech's torso, just barely letting the metal surfaces touch before firing every weapon in that arm at point blank range.

The jolt knocked the upper torso of the _Glass Spider_ backward and over its legs, slamming itself into the ground so hard it temporarily knocked Weston cold and at the complete mercy of the juggernaut lumbering overhead.

* * *

…stillness… no, it wasn't still. It moved; the world did, very slowly. Some kind of void with far off sparks and crackles…

A shape formed overhead bearing the musculature of an ancient Greek god. As it stared down at him with his hammer raised high, Weston just marveled at the sight, completely fearless of the threat it posed. After all, dreams don't actually kill you.

It swung once, and the impossibly giant hammer stopped just short of Weston's face, slamming into an invisible barrier that cracked under the monstrous pressure. Then it swung again, shaking his world and forcing the surrounding crackles into explosions. And as he watched the giant reel back for a third swing, its eyes went wide and it backed up, swatting at itself as if it were infested with unseen parasites.

Then, without notice, the giant morphed into what looked like a boxy figure with heavy stumps for arms. And the lights cut to turn the scene into a dark void, one with which he was able to shake the state out of his head and return to the real world. For a moment, the return was regrettable.

At once everything focused in, and he realized his _Glass Spider_ was on its back looking up. What it faced was the outline of a _Dire Wolf_, reeling back in an attempt to defend itself from the elementals crawling on its surface.

Within moments its legs exploded, and the upper torso violently started twisting back and forth. But several more explosives planted within its upper armor humbled it. And after a few moments of bleeding coolant and wiring, it sank into its base and slowly pitched backward until it fell over, causing a small earthquake and settling into the snow.

Weston tried to raise the _Glass Spider_ to its feet, failing twice with the way its body twisted in the fall and the difficulty he was having with the neurohelmet.

So he popped the hatch and was instantly overtaken by the fresh air. It was cold, but inviting. Crawling out of his smoldering cockpit entirely and making it past the wash of steam rising from it, he noticed no other 'mechs around. Burning remains littered the landscape, showing him just how destructive the clans can be when their ideals of honor are turned against each other.

But he was part of the 'bad' side, and he did not agree with that accusation. In fact, he grew so adamant about it that he waded back to his cockpit to resurrect his 'mech to claim a victory for his trothkin that fell here tonight. He didn't care how banged up it was, he was going to make it happen.

* * *

Deep trenches trailed behind Bree as she both ran and slid down the steep slope, stripping layers off and foregoing the weight of her bulky spotting equipment as she went to increase her speed. The burning carcass of Thao's _Night Gyr_ was getting closer with every breath, with some of them used to try and raise him over the radio.

He was quiet since the crash, making her brain automatically think the worst. But there was nothing in this world that she knew of that could stop her from confirming it herself. She had to believe that he made it. He was the only reason she was here today, breathing at all.

She slammed into the metal surface of the 'mech to stop as slowing down safely would take more time than she could forgive herself for. Since Thao never ejected and his radio was scrapped in the crash, she had every reason to believe the worst was possible and knew time was an enemy to be treated just like any Steel Viper at the moment.

It took her longer than she wanted to find the access hatch, though it was entirely possible time itself was stretching out in her mind. She found the smashed cover that hid the access keypad. After typing in the Nighthawks' universal security code she found that the manual lever to disengage the pressure seals and open the hatch was damaged. Whether it was the explosion or the fall mattered not. She tore away her gloves and clawed at it until her fingernails bled trying to get a grip on it. It was simply not budging. That is when she resigned to the fact that she needed help in the form of one who specialized in ripping 'mechs open, only to curse aloud when realizing she must have lost her radio somewhere on the slope behind.

So she climbed onto the chassis and peered into the cove ahead. In the distance she saw movement. It was only dark shapes disturbing shadows cast by flaming debris over other dark shapes, but it was enough to tell her that her elementals were in the distance scouring for survivors. She jumped and shouted at the top of her lungs, kicking a metal protrusion to send an audible 'clang' over with her pleas. Waving her arms and expending the last of her energy, she finally saw the duel glints of elemental jump jets carrying one away from the group in her direction.

Suddenly realizing how much time has passed, she slid back down to the hatch and stared again at the dented obstruction. Closing her eyes and inhaling deep, she again tore at the handle with her fingers, trying to pull it from its housing and abandoning all regard for the toll it took on her body. And suddenly, she got a small handhold, and grunted with her entire body as she willed it loose. Several clicks told her the air-tight seal was broken and probably already vented, but the circuits were functional enough to disengage the locks.

Throwing the hatch aside she peered into the cockpit and shouted Thao's name, praying for a response. The inside was a mess, with everything smashed into everything else and random sparks going off from the exposed wires that were forcefully torn from their housings and grounding out on the exposed metallic surfaces.

After shouting his name a second time she saw a hand. His hand. It was lifeless and turning blue, outstretched in her direction. She visually followed the accompanying arm further into the cockpit and saw another part of him while listening with the utmost intensity for any sign of life. And she got it with an almost inaudible moan.

"Thao…" she began quietly. A wave of relief washed over her head that was indescribable. The image of the 75 ton chassis being eviscerated in fire 200 meters in the air and crashing, lifeless into the cold, black expanse of this small hell threatened to tear the very fabric of her sanity from her. At last, a piece of it seemed to be restored.

The reply was labored and laden with effort, "Bree… I… cannot…"

"What is it?" she asked, trying to help in any way she could.

"My… chest… it… is…"

He never finished. She examined the area he was in again, trying to locate where his chest would be to notice he was crushed flat between several panels of monitors and controls.

"Oh God…" she said to herself as she started to get light headed. Her heart beat grew louder and color started to recede from the world again as her consciousness tried to leave her. Seemingly spinning in place while the lashing tongues of the surrounding flames whispered tempting lies in her ear, it seemed impossible not to believe them. The sounds of war grew louder, as the distant roar of aircraft engines seemed to invade her shrinking world. Flashes of light assailed her from the outside, creating a stroboscopic effect that forced her to close her eyes.

But she would not go, not this time; it was not her life on the line. She willed herself back to the world and regained a sense of equilibrium in time before her knees buckled. She reached out to brace herself and accidentally pulled a monitor down from the remaining panel on the back wall.

Thao's hand instantly spasmed, and after looking she could actually see his chest convulsing, trying to suck in air but failing to get any. Panic landed on her and sweat forced its way from her head despite the assailing cold around. Inspecting the consol she brought down, she instantly recognized the air hose connected to the mask that engages when ejecting. It was crimped shut between heavy equipment just beyond her reach, and the stuff was way too heavy for her to lift, not to mention unstable. It made sense as his voice was muffled. The ejection sequence kicked in but never finished, sealing the air mask to his face, a mask that was probably pinned to it by more debris.

In her heightened state she heard him pumping, panicking, and then slowing down. It would not take long for him to die in here. Despair could have overridden her as the sound of Thao's attempted breathing slowly faded, but she reached back into herself and found the resolve to do whatever it took to get him out, regardless of what it did to her.

She pulled her combat knife from its sheath and plunged herself head first into the mess, ignoring the wind picking up outside the cockpit as the air battle seemed to approach with all of its chaotic glory. Reaching as best she could, she was several inches short of cutting the breathing hose connected to the piece she was sure was smashed against Thao's face wherever it was pinned in here. If she could cut it open before the crimp, at least he would get air.

She again threw her body in there, trying to get further than before, but failing. Slashing in every direction she noticed his hand stopped moving. It slowly rested on the surface on which it was pinned and lay there lifeless.

Abandoning all sense of self preservation, she thrust her arm into the only other hole she could see leading to the hose to subsequently cut her wrist on protruding debris. But she would not pull out. She knew she had just two inches to go. She pushed harder, slowly slicing her arm open with the effort. An explosion rocked the 'mech slightly as a fighter crashed nearby, drowning the world in its volatile drama. She blocked it out entirely.

_Just an inch left,_ she thought to herself. And, taking a deep breath, she made a final thrust, forcing her veins open around the jagged surface ensnaring her and feeling that satisfying tension release when the knife finally made its way through the thick rubber surface.

Instantly she heard Thao gasp for air, inhaling deep and exhaling scratchy moans of pain.

"Thao!"

Her cry was followed by a residual explosion from the downed aircraft, and another in the sky that pounded a jarring light down on the valley.

He did not respond vocally, though his hand started squeezing rhythmically.

She could not free her right arm, as it was still stuck in the hole and slowly draining her all over the bottom of the cockpit. But she was able to pull her left arm under her body and blindly grip his hand. It wasn't much, but he would make it, she knew it in her bones. After all that he went through for her the last few days, she just smiled at the thought that she had come through for him when he really needed it. Together, they were the eye in the storm of war that engulfed them. In the seemingly most dangerous place on the ground, she felt invulnerable next to him.

A thump from outside startled her. Looking over she saw the foot of an elemental suit standing outside the cockpit opening. The elemental squatted down and spoke to her through its external speaker though the facemask was not visible through her narrow vantage point. "Hey! Bree! It is Samme. Just let me know what surface I need to pull on to peel this banana, quiaff?"

The clawed hand of Samme's elemental suit reached around until he covered a support beam that looked like it could carry some weight. She grunted to the best of her ability to let him know he had hit the spot, and with a powerful tug he peeled back the instrumentation near the opening. Then, with the hole widened, he simply peered inside and started pinpointing different items to tear out of the cockpit proper until he was able to allow her to free her hand and pull Thao from the now narrow opening.

He was not pinched in at any other location thankfully, allowing her to pull him onto the snow below and cover him with her jacket.

Samme looked on without judgment as she held him close. Their commander's breathing started to lose its depth and he regained a sense of normality enough for them to relax.

But relaxation was not something given freely tonight however, as Samme's eyes opened wide in response to a communication within his helmet and he shouted, "Oh shit! They just brought down the _Broadsword--!"_

With a flash of pure white, a massive explosion made its way over the rocky peak that engulfed them in a startling concussive blast. But it wasn't the loss of blood or the shock of the explosion that made Bree's heart stop, it was the silhouette of a battle-torn _Linebacker_ omnimech watching them from the top of the hill behind, waiting for them in the cold black that was stolen from it for mere moments and returned just the same. It was staring at them, and both Samme and Bree knew it. They just looked in awe trying to figure out where it came from, not participating in this battle with them and having arrived after the fact from another direction, and most definitely another battle.

But, as if that wasn't enough, the following slammed the door of reality shut on them as the LRM rack in its right torso flared to life and unleashed five hungry warheads in their direction.

The missiles surged their way toward the three at the base of the hill and Samme's head spun not with the denial of his new reality, but with complete understanding of it. With the missile lock warning overtaking whatever sense of audible awareness he had of the world, he realized that the only thing the _Linebacker_ could have locked onto so quickly was his armor suit. And since it was standing next to the body of his commander, it made sense to use that lock for the killing blow.

In the time it took for his brain to send the signal to his hands, Samme engaged the jump jets on his body armor and separated himself from his two teammates behind to have the missiles change course after him. The first missile hit him square in the torso and detonated, blowing him back into the _Night Gyr_ behind as the other four followed and engulfed him in his final blaze of glory.

Bree pulled Thao's head in close to protect it from the explosions so near behind. There was nothing else she could do but hold him and hope any shrapnel would be caught by her body before getting to him.

Luckily, she didn't have to suffer that as well. She had trouble letting go of Thao afterward, though she did manage to open her eyes and look up at her would-be murderer. What she found was a spent 'mech, silent in its stance, gazing into the sky.

And like angels themselves answered her call for vengeance, beams of light seared from the heavens into the dark figure from multiple directions, burning their way in slowly and then tearing it apart at once.

In a violent but welcoming display of resolution, Gregors and his wingman swooped across her plane of vision as she continued to gaze into the sky in awe passing a lone _Tyre_ fighter that lent its firepower from the other direction, showing her that not one member of their unit would leave any other alone, ever. Despite their clan's attitude, they could always count on each other.

The surprisingly gentle sound of the aerospace fighters passing overhead was the wind-down to a night that begged to return to its natural order: peace in the blackness, and comfort in the cold.

Bree sat there, holding the man she cared for more than herself. She lost all concept of time and never heard the men approaching from the distant cave opening before they were helping her to her feet. She was getting lightheaded from her wrist wound and could not hold her own balance.

But luckily, the strangers bandaged her up and carried them off. Off to somewhere even more quiet, and void of the piercing cold that she had gotten used to. Off to a mass grave, where the inhabitants welcomed those that created it for them.

Looking back into the field before she reentered the cave, she saw Weston walking in his _Glass Spider_ beside Kim's _Summoner _in the distance. They were the only two 'mechs left standing. As banged up as they were, the mere sight of them towering above the killing field of those that would deny them their place in the world ignited a sense of pride that burned hot from within. _If they bring lies,_ she thought to herself, _we bring truth. If they bring hate… we bring death._


	8. Chapter Seven: Final Purge

**CHAPTER SEVEN: FINAL PURGE**

When mankind is isolated and unfed with no sense of time or freedom from the stench of its own feces, it ends up soaked in self-doubt, in the fetal position, shivering, and it eventually shocks the effort of survival out of its system to the point where it doesn't even blink.

Lying in the center of his three by three meter concrete box next to a growing pile of excrement, thoughts of suicide are replaced with utter numbness. It is over eighty degrees, yet his body shrinks in tighter to shiver from its own sense of frozen despair. The tattered uniform caked in dried blood and puss resulting from the excessive torture he received conformed to his shape, making it uncomfortable, albeit painful to move and reform it.

It is here decades of life, a clan warrior upbringing is slowly purged from his mind, where his very identity and sense of being has left him an empty shell wanting of death but too bitter to force it upon himself. All sense of time was lost. It has been so long since he slept that counting to twenty was near impossible, with the numbers jumbling in his head somewhere between fourteen and eighteen every time. To think this was once a warrior who overcame the loss of his leg to win his bloodname and lead a front line cluster in Operation: Revival hinted at madness.

He was broken. With his spirit siphoned through his pain and pride ripped from his being, time could leave him shivering here for eternity and it would make not a difference. The ultimate insult one can endure is being stripped of one's purpose in the world. The natural order demands every person fills a role, no matter how large or small within its collective domain. When one falls outside that box, its existence is nothing more than a hollow curse so heavy it crushes the world around it away.

Maybe that is why he agreed to it. Maybe he didn't want to remain outside that box of place and purpose. Or maybe he didn't see his captors as the enemy anymore, but in the same category as his previous clan, part of the stain upon this world called humanity. Because only humans would be so cruel as to strip someone of their natural birthright: the right to exist.

The door cracked open exposing light to his eyes for the first time in hours. They themselves were extremely bloodshot from the lack of sleep he endured over the last several days. Even his dreams reinforced the pain of his new world, offering no escape past the confines of physics and the reality of lasting, physical scars.

Moving his hand to cover his searing eyes was painful enough, but it was automatic and not to be helped. It looked like despite losing everything else, natural instincts would always remain.

He was led from his box outside on a cybernetic leg that had been tampered with so much by his tormentor that it was jerky and failed to respond every several steps. He really needed it serviced, something he never thought he would say having it so well taken care of before.

After a short walk, a LAAF officer bearing the rank of Leutnant-General handed him a clean set of clothes and waited while he hesitantly changed, wondering what the now unpredictable day's future had in store for him. The material was soft, much softer than the gore-hardened uniform that only attracted flies. The sudden change his skin experienced was enough to jump-start his brain again, something he did not believe possible with such a small event. And while his voice was too horse to use, he listed to the officer speak as he had not interacted with a human that was not stripping him of further dignity in what seemed like a lifetime.

"Each man undergoes his own awakening in the experience you had. Every amount of social conditioning, every ounce of pride, notion of honor, and sense of identity is stripped away, leaving the core being in place to be explored untainted. Your core has been exposed, and now that you know who you truly are, we offer you one of the things we took away, helping you regain the rest to form a person stronger than any you will encounter from here out."

He listened, somehow understanding every word and its implication. Weeks ago, the thought of accepting any 'purpose' from these monsters was inhibited by his pride. Now, he could be killed just the same and care not an ounce about it.

"Your clan cannot comprehend what we have done. The human mind is so much more complex than the warrior training you received can handle. In days we have deconstructed a lifetime of mental conditioning. Can you not see who holds the true power? There is no right and wrong, but only strength and weakness.

"And if you truly believe only the strong survive, then you will help your trothkin prove themselves. You will provide them with a challenge so great as to rival your own journey to your core. And then it can truly move forward or die: the only two acceptable outcomes in any challenge in life."

Just exactly where this guy was going got confusing, suggesting that he could help his clan achieve greatness through tribulation. What could he do as a degraded, worthless rag of flesh now that he had been defeated and stripped of any dignity? How could he benefit from anything any longer, let alone his clan?

He was led to a building on the other side of the garden they had been walking through. Past the door awaited another man wearing a LAAF dress uniform. But this one was different. He spoke with a tone very distanced from the officer next to him, and he wore the crest of the Steiner royal family.

The new man's words started to make sense as he spoke them, telling him just how he would be great again despite no one ever knowing. He gave the broken man a sliver of confidence that his own self perception would give him more strength than any military award. He outlined exactly how he would help the universe by challenging his former clan with the proven guile of his captors to help it the way it helped him. It diminished the value of the casualties resulting, making them an acceptable price to pay for greatness.

With the strong truly the only to survive, it all justified itself. And after being given the dignity of a human being again after so long, he was told he would be released. He was told his clan would return to again liberate this world, and that he would again be given the opportunity to take what he was given here and rise through its ranks, put him in a position to make it prove its invincibility, or put it out of its misery entirely.

"Go," they said…

* * *

"…_go back to your clan…"_ Jacob stood in the tall cavern heated by his equipment and buzzing with the chatter of his men and the collected group of injured, freezing pilots. They had survived the Armageddon outside and with that gained his respect, something he thought he was incapable of producing anymore, at least for his former clan.

The ultimate twist is that ahead in a medical tent lay the body of the man that tried to kill him so long ago in these very caves. He dreamed of the day he would be face to face with the insidious traitor that followed orders to murder his own trothkin, but never knew under what circumstances it would actually happen.

Now, with all that had happened to these warriors over the last several days, he could not think of bringing them any more death. It was not charity on his part, but commonality. They too were betrayed by their own clan, and risked their very lives to protect it nonetheless. They had acted in a fashion he never could have imagined himself acting in, and that realization humbled him a bit. How much the world he thought he knew could turn upside down in just a few days…

* * *

Thao awoke to find himself in a sleeping bag surrounded by the walls of a small tent. The only other thing here was Star Commander Bree, holding his hand, seemingly waiting for his return to this realm.

Her eyes were welcoming and full of concern, but her smile told him that he would be alright. The fact that he slept for the first time in days had its own effect on him, one he was not complaining about. But the pain shooting through several points in his body told him that he had a lot more recovering to do before resembling the condition he was in when he started this nightmarish journey.

"Hey," she started with a soft voice. "Welcome back."

He smiled, "Hey." Then he tried to look around before thinking better of it, "Where are we?"

"In a cavern underground. Jacob and his men came to help us out of the cold."

"How many…" He could not find the words to complete the sentence. He suddenly remembered the battle and all of its despair. Her shaking her head did not help soothe him, as her face told him of their loss. "Bree," he started, nearly choking back tears, "I am sorry. I am so sorry. They deserved better than this--"

She cut him off, "Stop. We who survived did so because of you. It was you who pulled us through all of this. Everyone believed in themselves, in our fight because of your confidence. Do not blame yourself for what the world does out of its own cruelty."

He appreciated the words, but still felt horrible knowing what kind of hell his unit was put through recently. Honorable battle was one thing, that was to be reveled in. But this was a death march with him at the front, leading them all down a dark road to nowhere. At least, that's how he felt until she spoke again.

"…Kael would have been proud."

"Would have been…?" He instantly knew what her comment implied, but needed to hear it outright to believe it.

She dipped her head when she spoke, "His signal flatlined before ejecting over three hours ago. Gregors could not find him anywhere in the area. He stayed in the air until his fuel nearly ran out."

_Wow…_ he thought. Kael Pershaw, the most stubborn man he had ever known: too stubborn to identify with the living most of the time, too stubborn to die. The thought of him actually leaving this world was near impossible to fathom, especially in the cockpit of a 'mech. What a glorious end to a career so shattered by politics at the last moment.

"There is nothing we can do about that," she continued, bringing him back to reality. "The battle was harsh. People die. That is the way it is."

Then a new voice penetrated the air inside the tent, "That is the way it has always been, quiaff?"

Bree turned to see Jacob standing in front of the entrance flap. She did not want to leave however. She fought too hard this last day to keep him and did not want to let him go now, alone with a man who had every right to demand rectification of past sins in the worst possible way. But Thao spoke against her wishes regardless.

"Bree," he started, taking a pause to remoisten his throat, "give us a moment." When she did not let go of his hand he continued, "Please?"

The look in his eyes assured her everything would be alright. How he knew was beyond her, but she did not argue. She just left the tent and stayed close, wanting to be as near to him as possible, even if separated by a sheet of vinyl and a disgraced warrior…

* * *

Jacob waited a moment to collect his thoughts and separate them from his emotions, "The clan has changed a lot since I was banished, quiaff? This group of yours resembles nothing I used to remember."

Thao automatically assumed a vulnerable position in this exchange, by not only being rescued by Jacob, but now lying in a sleeping bag simply trying to keep warm. "Neg, the clan is exactly the same. We would be fighting Falcons just the same as the Vipers outside had they followed us here instead."

"That is curious," Jacob began as he sat down facing the star captain, "because you all seem to think that by surviving you can still serve a purpose. After all, that is why you won that battle. Am I right?"

Thao paused, "… it is complicated."

"Try me." The look in Jacob's eyes was genuinely curious. Besides, after what Thao did to him, he was owed a little insight to his own similar betrayal.

"Yes. Our own clan turned its back on us, though I guess we had it coming. The type of unit we are, the stuff we do, it begs for scrutiny from the narrow-minded traditionalist." A slight look of bitterness broke through, "But if we did not exist, the clan would already be broken. It just does not know how much it needs us."

"Needs you, huh? Looks like you convinced it. They sentence you to death as well?"

Thao should have expected this, and his sigh was one more of shame than disgruntlement, "The clan means well, if we can _take care_ of those who abuse its naivety. It stands for an ideal that is stained by those selfish assholes that exploit it for personal gains." He grew angry as he spoke, thinking about Dev and gaining strength through his resentfulness, "I have been betrayed by the same man that ordered me to kill you so long ago. I know now that nothing is sacred but justice; and I aim to drown him in it if it kills me."

Jacob lowered his head and smiled at the enthusiasm and passion displayed by a warrior he could have become had he had more faith in his clan and chosen to be more optimistic. It was funny how the world had things turn out. If there was such a thing as fate, it had a twisted sense of humor, one Jacob could relate to.

"I know now that you did not know who we were back then. Dev used you to do his dirty work before throwing you out like he did."

"Aff."

"Then I want to help you bring him down."

That widened Thao's eyes. Jacob wanted to _help_ him? After he nearly killed him so long ago in these very caves, he found himself side by side with his own victims. He couldn't write something so absurdly unrealistic if he tried, yet it somehow felt like a completely natural course of action. "Good. We can use the help."

Just then one of Jacob's subordinates threw the flap to the tent open and interrupted them, "Jacob, we have a transmission you need to hear."

Thao emerged from his sleeping bag quickly, using the recently reacquired energy and followed Jacob to the communications table setup not too far from the tent. On it were several scanners, spanning the fairly narrow array of signals the Jade Falcon military used to send and receive communications. A voice rang out from the speaker of one of them that resonated deep within both Thao and Jacob.

"…_I understand that. I am asking permission to clean up my own clan's mess, and in the act relieve your men of any inherent danger of tracking these bandits down."_ It was Dev Iler, and he was already in the middle of an exchange with someone.

There was a pause in the communication as the recipient contemplated its response, _"Very well. I will not deny a clan the opportunity to exterminate its own vermin. But you will be monitored, for security reasons. I hope you understand."_ It was a female voice demanding of respect, most likely higher ranking than the treacherous star colonel.

"_Completely. My dropships will depart shortly and give you coordinates for our landing and search areas."_

"_Good. I will give you this opportunity because of the result of your success against my fellow Steel Viper forces at New Sydney. You have 48 hours to find these dezgra and dispose of them. After that our hospitality runs out."_

"_Well bargained and done, Galaxy Commander. Star Colonel Dev Iler, out."_

"So he is coming for us here, huh? After we are out of 'mechs and completely spent? What a coward!" Mechwarrior Weston slammed his fist into the table as he finished the sentence, mirroring the anger sparked in everyone present, even the former 2nd Falcon Velites.

But that is when Thao spoke up and controlled the tone of the situation before it flared too high, "He will not find us here." Several people moved in closer to participate, or at least observe the exchange while he continued, "We move out in twenty minutes."

"What?" Several people raised their eyebrows in shock. They were in no condition to move. Some of the wounded were still getting used to their splints and bandages, let alone eating for the first time in almost two days.

His command tone returned, along with the bearing and confidence that showed he was a natural leader, "The travel time from New Sydney to here by dropship is not long, and we need to get to Renatia by ground to shut Arthur Stoklas down. We fry the big fish first, then work our way in-house."

Many had trouble understanding his logic. Those in Jacob's outfit were especially confused, having waited for their chance to kill Dev for years and wondering who this Arthur Stoklas was and why he was more important. But Jacob, in his discourse with Julian earlier, knew exactly what was going on and agreed. "Men, we have a new mission. Pack up and be ready to move in twenty!"

His troops responded at the same time and disbursed to work their gear into the vehicles they had parked a distance away. That is when Thao inquired about the one question banging on his mind from even before the battle in the valley, "Where is Julian?"

Jacob looked at Thao, "I do not know. He left on a snowmobile fourteen hours ago."

"Did he hint at where he was heading?"

"No. He took water and some MREs, along with a boat load of maps and fuel before disappearing. I think he went east, right into a massive storm that luckily missed us. That man is crazy…" he finished, trailing off.

Thao shook his head in further confusion. Not only was Julian alive, but he forewent the opportunity to join up with his unit and is now off snowmobiling somewhere on his own. _What the hell was going on?_

"What were the maps of?" he asked.

Everything. Some main-road transportation maps, smuggling routes, topographical…"

_Great,_ Thao thought, a_nother mystery to be postponed._ "Well, I will deal with him later. We have to move now while the Steel Vipers are still reeling from the loss of their cluster. How long has it been since the battle?"

"Three hours."

_Just three hours,_ Thao thought? He was so energized he could have sworn it felt like a solid day since. But he just took that as a blessing and gathered his men for the trip ahead, which he was sure was going to be long and cold…

* * *

Galaxy Commander Angelica Zalman waved Arthur Stoklas into one of the chairs in front of her desk, "This… Star Colonel Dev Iler seems eager to take these Falcon bandits out himself. I thought bandit hunting was considered below a Colonel's duties, but the Jade Falcons are seemingly full of surprises lately, quiaff?"

Arthur's face was indifferent, "Aff." Unlike her, he thought they were extremely predictable. He knew Dev was here to meet up with him and just so found an incriminating loose end wandering around in the countryside. It was important for Dev to seal that up before it leaked into the open, but Arthur knew and had to play the game of ignorant observer to keep his own intentions secret, which bored him to death.

"I had aerial reconnaissance set up with several assault stars loaded into _Union-C's_ to find and finish the dezgra, but they are now on standby." For good reason she did not look disappointed.

"Galaxy Commander," he started, "For two days?"

"Neg. I am increasing security for the command center though. Increased 'mech patrols and ID checks. How are you faring in your new facility?"

He wanted to keep a low profile in his new command center, mainly to mask any incriminating activity that may occur there in the next phase of his pushing this war. He chose the location because it previously being an information hub gave him access to facility hardware needed for his normal operations. It was formerly a government library of sorts, and blended in with the surrounding buildings fairly well, or at least better than the main capitol building Angelica chose for her office. Because of that, its target profile was significantly smaller and he decided to minimize security to just his personal staff, which were much more qualified than anyone thought.

"My facility is up and running smoothly. My staff can handle security. I am not worried about anything outside the expected tasks ahead."

The insinuation that she was paranoid went unnoticed. "I am keeping the task force on standby until we receive the status of the 195th."

"Understood." He too was interested in finding out what happened to them.

"I also want you to keep an eye on this Star Colonel Iler."

"Aff. I already have something in place for that." Little did she know, he was on Dev the moment he landed in New Sydney. In fact, he already had the demolitions set up in the Renatia trial center planning on Dev landing to defend his clan's enclave headquarters, not its secondary city. Dev's move in challenging the smaller, weaker force in an assured victory robbed him of that fate and extended his life that much longer.

Arthur's personal investment in that man was going to remain clandestine if he could help it. With the Emerald Talon operation and its apparent failure unknown to the rest of the clan, he accepted the loss and was grateful that was the only hiccup he incurred so far. No more would be acceptable.

* * *

The routes Jacob and his men developed to get around the region unseen were incredibly efficient. Originally thinking they would veer around main roadways and river systems and therefore be longer and cumbersome, Thao was delighted when he learned their preferred routes were up the gut of the terrain, utilizing the mentality that the faster they moved, the less chance they took getting caught, even at the expense of some exposure.

Most of the trip was downhill, which quickly saw the average temperature rise as they descended. While Jacob's men were accustomed to this, the Nighthawks were constantly stripping layers or repositioning their wardrobes to adjust to the continuing climate change.

It was nice to feel the wind flow over his head so freely after the last few days. The simple act of racing down a river in a speed-raft at 110 km/h, skimming the surface of a natural water flow glistening in the rising sun harboring smells of cedar and pine was almost orgasmic to those used to the hot, cramped confines of a battlemech cockpit or stagnant spacecraft.

Looking ahead, he saw the river split, just like Jacob told him it would. One of the three rafts positioned itself to their left, ready to take the other split in the fork and form up to create diversions to clear as much Steel Viper security as possible for their near suicidal mission.

Once Jacob realized Thao did not have an actual plan worked out, he spoke with him to devise an impressively simple maneuver to get him where he needed to go. It was a weight off Thao's shoulders, which have carried the burden of more battle plans, alternative strategies, coordinating underground activities, and political defenses in the last 72 hours than Jacob did the last six years. Jacob actually enjoyed working his mind around military strategy again, especially on a project as impossible as this. It was liberating, as near decades of training had molded his mind into a clan military officer whose sole purpose was to kill, and figure out ways to kill better.

Eight out of the eighteen members of Thao's 'mech trinary made it through last night's maelstrom. The three extra were Julian, Kael, and Gretchen, of which Julian was MIA and Kael KIA. Asano regained consciousness shortly after the combat ended and the other pilots slowly converged near the middle of the cove the elementals secured against the surviving Steel Viper pilots. The idea of executing the Vipers, or simply leaving them out in the cold to reap what they sow was actually never entertained, as Shaine's elementals allowed everyone in around the fire they set up.

The elementals now were guarding their Viper prisoners. Normally, winning a battle like that would provide isorla in the form of bondsmen. But the Nighthawks were considered dark caste now, and that was not a battle bid between both participating parties. While the Vipers were glad hospitality was extended, they were still confined under armored security until this entire situation unfolded. Them being in a dark, enclosed cavern somewhere beneath the surface of Marshall did help unbolt the normally sturdy nature of Steel Viper deployments. With so many unknowns, something had to give that normally didn't. It was only natural.

After another twenty minutes, Jacob tapped Thao's shoulder to guide his attention to the view of Renatia climbing over the horizon in the distance. It was beautiful in the morning light. Fields around them were lush with foliage, though cold fog still filled the low spots forming pools of mist randomly spaced throughout their surroundings. The sheen glass of the tall buildings, as tall as they got here anyway, reflected the sun's rays out in all directions, though it seemed to pinpoint just the viewer as he looked at it.

Thao felt Bree next to him inhale deep to help absorb the sight. It was welcoming after the previous night; and squeezing Bree's hand he decided that with all the hells in the world they have seen, he picked a priceless day to die if that was what awaited him beyond the aqueducts ahead.

* * *

"_Sir, all combat teams are locked in and our launch orders have been verified."_

"Great, anything new to tell me?" Dev sat in his cramped dropship office again studying the faces and what information he could pull up from the Nighthawks' roster. Since most of it was deleted or simply not recorded since their transfer from previous units, he was now just killing time waiting for his _Overlord-C_ to launch.

Then, finally, a tech addressed him over the general channel, _"Star Colonel?"_

"Yes?"

"_This is tech Emil. We found the problem. Several steps on the docking crew pre-launch checklist were never done, which is why we didn't get the green light."_

Dev could not count how many times he asked the other castes on his dropship crew to refrain from using contractions around him, but was concerned enough with his timetable to spare the other man a lecture. "Are we finalized now, then?"

"_Yes sir. Ready to go."_

"Good. Find the man responsible for the delay and send him to my office."

"…_yes sir."_

Finally he felt the rumble of his dropship's rockets as they lifted him from the ground of the planet he so distantly remembered. The reported loss of an entire trinary caught in a storm during navigational drills drew a strong 'suggestion' from command that he be transferred to a more, environmentally friendly post with some supervision. What they didn't know is that he expected that, and quickly worked his way out of that funk through effective politics. Losing that trinary and the hell it would have caused him if it reported its knowledge is what allowed him to remain a warrior, and eventually, again throw his clan into the fires of challenge that would mold it into either the fiercest fighting machine possible, or a distant memory unworthy of noting. Anything in between would be beneath his notice.

* * *

The trip into the city proper was more cautious as the two rafts in Thao's party slowed and utilized overhead cover points when air reconnaissance challenged their vulnerability in such a direct route. They headed toward the east bloc water purification facility before normal working hours would release civilians into the equation. It was crucial to have deployed as soon as they had, or else they would have never made it this far with either the Vipers seeing them, Dev landing on them, or the Renatia inhabitants showing curiosity at the sight of illegal combat rafts snaking through their city with bandits and worn-out 'mech pilots alike belonging to the clan that so recently lost this city and their allegiance.

Right now the streets were not crowded with the silent-running electric cars, the sidewalks not populated with those heading to and from public transportation sites on their way to work. And that lack of life made it infinitely easy for Jacob to dock at the facility like he had so many times in the past under the cover of night and hide it after getting the riders topside.

They entered the facility itself and grabbed several overall and coverall uniforms to hide their tattered pilot vests and thermal under-gear. In three smaller groups, they merged with the now emerging populace to make way to a bus that would take them to a garage they maintained within the city storing supplies and a special little item they have been working on the last year leaving two of Jacob's men to excuse themselves to another location within the city…

* * *

Entering the garage, Thao thought it was surprisingly stressful avoiding eye contact with all the people he was intermixed with on the streets, afraid that they would see his worn face and bother him with concern as his fatigue finally caught up with him. But a new energy temporarily spiked within again when his eyes laid themselves upon the sight of a custom-made armored personnel carrier, complete with a forward wedge battering ram, solid wheels, armored chassis, and support machine gun mounts along the roof.

He approached and ran his hand over the near-reflective surface like he did to his _Night Gyr_ almost exactly a day before. Jacob's men grinned with pride, some even smiled showing teeth at the chance to finally take her for a spin. They played rock/paper/scissor to pick their positions out, the driver being the most coveted one at double elimination down to the last man before playing for the rest.

Some of the Nighthawks actually sulked when shown their ride: an eight person passenger van with the sign, "Recovering Alcoholic Community Service Transport" painted across the sides depicting it as one of the government vehicles designed to embarrass convicted public intoxicated individuals and drunk drivers while they performed several hundred hours of tasks nearly too menial to ask the dredges of the laborer caste to do. The humor of it all was that they could simply show their fatigue and wear to pull off a near perfect portrayal of real community service workers.

A map was unfurled on a table the commanders gathered around, including Gretchen, Bree, and Weston in place of Marx, who was still in the mountain cavern with the broken leg he sustained landing on loose rocks after ejecting the night before in combat. On it Jacob's right hand man, Daniels, highlighted the most probable Steel Viper Watch headquarters location, the locations for both the first and second diversions, and escape routes and rally points they can utilize in case they are compromised before deploying.

Then Thao followed Jacob to the corner of the garage while the former commander of the 2nd Falcon Velites radioed his second team. There was no reply at first, showing Thao that the surge of Steel Viper communications congesting the air waves due to their numerous initial urban assimilation operations would be yet another obstacle to work around.

But Jacob had yet another trick up his sleeve, or up the wall to be more accurate. A photovoltaic powered signal booster on the corner of the air conditioner assembly on the roof beeped to life as Jacob finally pulled out all the stops and was able to access the fruits of all his pet projects over the years, almost like showing off.

A short moment later, a reply burst through the communicator, _"Copy that. We are now at the auxiliary transformers in the east bloc. Ready to detonate charges…" _Jacob had planned first to set charges off in the bloc in which they planned to operate in case the Steel Viper leadership decided it was a decoy attack for a real force in the west bloc.

The duo immediately made their way to the latter leading to the roof access hatch. Upon emerging into the sunlight assaulting the roof and forcing them to shield their eyes, they found a nice perch and crouched low to keep from gaining any unwanted attention. Then Jacob gave the command, "Go for it."

In the distance, through binoculars they saw an explosion in a parking lot take out what looked like a gas main, as several constant jets of clean burning fire fingered into the sky and scratched at it repeatedly without relief.

While the muffled sound of the distant explosion was as much background noise to them as a door closing, the pedestrians populating the sidewalks were startled to life before city sirens went off and echoed through the concrete maze of buildings. The sirens hinted at crisis, which is how the people responded: in a wave of panic finding some throwing themselves into nearby buildings and others avoiding structures altogether and running down the middle of the street to disrupt traffic.

Weston appeared behind them as they sat back and watched the dancing flames in the distance like neighbors would watch distant fireworks from their lawn chairs during the Founding Day celebration. "Now what?" he asked.

"We wait," Jacob replied.

Thao just nodded his approval. He was impressed at Jacob's efficiency at 'hidden warfare' and not entirely surprised how familiar he was with it himself. He momentarily deducted that his unit truly was representative of the type of war the clans were determined to eliminate entirely, but then naturally distanced his unit's intentions with those of terrorists, freedom fighters, and those that revel in chaos for chaos' sake. Their goals were noble.

Eventually, they heard booming footsteps in the distance. Jacob had been watching the security forces and traffic diversions while Thao observed the emergency response vehicles and what routes they used. But when the promise of incoming battlemechs became a reality, they combined their data and decided which building to assault. They chose the government library and administration building, as patrols were evenly covering all four sides of its surrounding green plaza lawn and even a fire truck and ambulance arrived there to sit in anticipation of being needed.

It was all standard municipal procedure to protect that structure, but the forces included Steel Viper security personnel and Thao and Jacob failed to find their presence anywhere else in the east bloc. Thao figured the actual operations center would not be in the main halls or even the electronic storage server vaults, but in the hub where the actual communications' network resided.

Luckily, he was stationed here long enough before to familiarize himself with the city, and actually remembered, vaguely, where that room was in the building. The rear right corner of the basement if he was not totally mistaken. If not, then it was the rear left corner of it. Jacob was impressed at Thao's intuition and told the driver of the APC where to aim when approaching the building. The smile alone told him that he understood.

* * *

While Hess and Killian quietly debated as to which strip club in the city was the most cost-friendly, the rest of the men in the diversion team killed their time looking busy under the highway overpass complex in the center of downtown Renatia, surrounded by scaling buildings lined with glass windows and the traffic that was finally thinning out from the morning rush.

They knew they could not sit here long having the Steel Vipers still on high alert trying to lock the city down for 'absorption', the process in which a clan assimilates the benefits of a particular area into their planetary infrastructure. It consisted mainly of surveying transportation routes; underground water, gas and sewage networks; and domestic monetary output before delving into the economic utility it served in its previous clan and can now serve in the new one.

Lucky for them, the operations start in the center and work their way out, leaving them better off sitting around for a short period of time here than if they were on the outskirts.

Suddenly, the radio spurred to life, and several of them jumped to it and listened to their commander confirm a clear signal, their identity, and give the order to start the party they so carefully prepared for everyone. They left the shadow of the overpass and made their way near the lobby of one of the nearest buildings. Then Hess won his paper/rock/scissor competition with Killian, and with it the honors of detonating the package.

The first set of charges went off fifty meters from the center of the overpass complex in the incoming lanes only, allowing the traffic on the connecting structures themselves to safely exit, albeit, at a reckless speed due to the reaction of random exploding asphalt. Then, the delayed second set of charges collapsed the structures onto themselves, forcing a deep rumbling through the streets of Renatia accompanied with a minor tremor and a huge cloud of dust slowly expanding into the roadways between the surrounding buildings.

The team cheered in perfect contrast to the mass panic now in the streets. They stood still for a moment and enjoyed the sight of their accomplishment before running with a small crowd away from the ominous dust cloud rolling their way to disappear at their leisure. In the distance they heard the heavy footfall of the battlemech response force rerouted from the east bloc, relieving the pressure of opposing firepower for Jacob and his small entourage.

* * *

The APC's engine roared to life being an internal combustion one compared to the battery powered van behind it. By now most of the civilians were off the street and sidewalks to their jobs or homes and traffic was finally moving again and thinning out from the initial panicked response to the recent explosion, which mattered not to the advancing two-vehicle convoy as it was utilizing the sidewalk and its complete, obstruction-free pathway straight to the heart of the east bloc and the government library building.

Light posts, information terminals, and garbage cans blurred past the vehicle at an incredible speed, seemingly shortening their trip with the heated sense of acceleration they all felt. And suddenly the ambient noise of the wheels moving on the pavement became a muffled shadow of itself as the vehicle launched itself from the curb of the sidewalk onto the asphalt street surrounding the library. The battlemech presence had left this post to secure the Galaxy Commander's main facility, leaving this fortress that much more pregnable.

With guards and even a star of elementals jumping out of the way before turning to fire on the racing vehicle with their short range missiles, the slit that was the APC windshield viewport suddenly showed its image blur as the vehicle itself skidded into a 180 degree turn and powered back in the direction of the rear of the building.

With Weston behind the wheel of the van veering left around the complex to avoid giving the star of Steel Viper elementals the opportunity to rip his vulnerable vehicle to shreds quicker than he could pass a double chili-cheese pork burger at gunpoint into a vacuum tube, he had to slow down more to accommodate the higher center of gravity and avoid flipping when he skidded around to face the rear left side of the target building opposite Thao and company.

The rear gunners on the APC successfully shot the first volley of SRM fire down, which was enough to afford them enough time to close the distance with the library and pulverize the outer wall into fragments generous enough to allow them passage.

An action-pausing jolt accompanied the deafening demise of the outer wall of the library. But it was just that, a jolt, as Thao kicked the door down he had been facing for the last thirty seconds and bolted from the vehicle soon to be in the crosshairs of those elementals again.

Everyone followed him as he found the doorway leading to the basement staircase and rammed through it with his shoulder. As if to accentuate the impact, Weston's van blew through its portion of the wall, albeit partially, right when Thao hit the door. He was too fast though, having moved halfway down the winding stairwell before the rustling of the second crew foretold their disbursal into the building whose design did not have an easily accessible stairwell on that side. The last three men in Thao's group actually saw the Viper elementals traverse the rubble and begin clearing the area, but the armored units were too large to fit into the stairwell doorway without jettisoning their missile launchers, which stalled them just enough to have the cry of their commander ring in their ears as his command center erupted into white from the flash bangs that were thrown through the entrance doorway.

* * *

With the rush that only a fast-paced raid can provide, Star Captain Thao Prentice breached the threshold of the lower network hub room to find the walls lined with computer terminals manned with Steel Viper technicians and lower ranking warriors. Star Colonel Arthur Stoklas, the Steel Viper Loremaster reeled in pain, hunched over with his eyelids straining to keep their contents intact. The grenades were within two meters of him when they went off, making Thao think about how this redeemed his horrible game of ski-ball he takes so much crap for.

Within seconds every Steel Viper tech had their hands raised while the warriors stood defiantly against the laser rifles pointed at their faces by a hostile force mixed with civilian-made combat utility clothing and official 'mech pilot vests alike. It only took one of Jacob's men to swing his weapon around and rifle-butt the challenging Viper warrior in front of him to the ground to ignite a momentary chain of violence that sent every Viper warrior present down and one to get shot. Gretchen and Daniels were already typing on an open terminal while it happened, forgoing concern for the enemy presence here for mission efficiency.

Behind them, the Viper elementals from outside tried to run down the winding staircase to get wedged in its narrow confines. A small puff of dust accompanied the struggling sounds of metal jamming itself in concrete to tell Thao he had a few moments to push them from his mind.

Without the adrenaline subsiding, he turned to face Arthur, who was finally able to stand up and slowly open his eyes. But when he saw the hostile group of tattered Jade Falcon pilots armed with what looked like hairy, weathered militants he forced himself to blink to assure his brain it was watching the right channel.

Thao took that opportunity to close the distance and point his rifle at Arthur's recovering body, resulting in both of them being alone in the middle of the room and the perfect focal point of the rising tension.

The confused Loremaster finally changed his expression from confusion to disbelief before opening his mouth, "Th… Thao?"

Thao lifted his chin in recognition of his name and said, "Cheers," before shooting Arthur in the left knee with his laser rifle and sending the loremaster to the ground in pain. The heat from the laser bore a hole through it and cauterized the wound shut. Arthur clutched his knee in pain and screamed momentarily from the shock of his nerves exploding signals all the way up to his brain, but shut himself up to preserve what face he had left.

Thao never moved. He thought the trip from the mountains, with the cool air and silent respite from all the action he survived the last few days would settle his mind and prepare it again for logical, calculating thought. He was wrong. The sight of the man who single-handedly tried to push his clan over the edge into turmoil, using it to turn on itself and his unit to reward the bastard Dev in the process sent Thao into a chaotic storm of emotion driven on hate. Everything he lived for was not only beneath this man's notice, but was squashed beneath his feet and left behind to wither away. And right now, Thao had the power to prove his superiority and take that world back, if for just a moment.

What was worse was that this man, Arthur Stoklas, was not taking this like his idea of a true warrior would. Instead of a cold, confident leader, before him lay a defeated, desperate man whose own world so easily slipped from his grasp. To be driven from your own clan by such a travesty was the icing on the cake.

Above them sounds of combat rose again, telling everyone present that the Viper elementals not jammed in the stairwell had found the rest of Thao's entourage and engaged. It served only as background noise to the developments inside.

Gretchen looked back from her terminal, not reacting to the firing but her own development before informing him, "It looks like he has a private server, and it is locked up tight. Fingerprint ID and a decryption code…"

Arthur felt an instant shift in mentality, because with his brain catching up to the shockingly unexpected development of a Falcon bandit militia storming his compound to undo years worth of planning, his face turned from one suffused with pain to anger. Despite all his work and success, right now, he was vulnerable to those most unworthy, "Who do you think you are, blasting your way in here like criminals? What could you possibly hope to accomplish? There is a _war_ going on and you are lucky to not be victims of it ye--"

He was interrupted by Thao's rifle discharging. A searing hot beam quickly lopped off Arthur's left hand, burning the new stub shut with the heat to create a clean cut. The sudden surge of pain exploded in Arthur's brain again, sending him back in a shock powerful enough to stop him from screaming. Clutching his arm's end at the wrist with his only remaining hand, he fought back tears and any vocal outcry that would further embarrass him in front of his men.

Thao just followed up coldly, "There is your fingerprint."

Daniels took the cue and headed over to the dismembered hand, him being the only one moving throughout the tense room. After returning to the consol with it and unlocking half the required bypass locks to the private server, he continued looking at Thao, who stood over Arthur like a farmer looms over an injured wolf that was caught feeding on his herd.

"You are _nothing_, insignificant. When my elementals get here, they will tear you to pieces. You are not leaving Renatia alive, freebirth." Arthur's message was clear; his words venomous, showing the utmost contempt for Thao's recent sacrifices.

Thao's response though, unlike the hot tempered Loremaster before him, rang cold with bitter truth, "I do not plan on it. But right here, right now, it does not matter."

The reality that whatever happens minutes from now, if Thao lived or died, if the truth of Arthur's actions were ever released or not had no bearing on Thao killing him outright, for he had all the power at the moment. And as if to prove his point, the action upstairs suddenly halted, before a jarring explosion sent shockwaves through the bodies below. The blast upset the building's structure as the second floor must've collapsed in on itself, with the resulting cheers and shouting from Thao's men above telling everyone listening that the elementals were no longer part of the equation.

That revelation put Arthur's mind in rewind and made him reset himself to meet the new circumstances. He calmed himself, closed his eyes, and adopted a new tone, "So, what do you want?"

"I want you," Thao answered, never removing his gaze, "To suffer like my men have the last few days; to feel all their pain, at the same time."

"The code…" Gretchen reminded him from the side of the room in an attempt to refocus him on the task at hand. If anything productive were to come of this, it was in the form of hard evidence. With their reputation completely decimated, it would take a lot for anyone to believe their word over the Steel Viper's Loremaster.

"As you should. I could not imagine having my clan gutted from the inside, with its own dishonor killing itself off, half of its holdings in jeopardy, and its most intransigent leader accused of mass genocide. When someone like Kael Pershaw is rejected by his own ranks, what chance do you have of anyone listening to you? Those files are useless."

"You are so proud of yourself," Thao stated, having not blinked since he set eyes on his prey. "You blackmail a savashri commander into setting his clan up for failure, luring all the bloodnamed away from their worlds to attack the vulnerable leftovers. You have him accuse us of genocide, ruining Kael's credibility while your saKhan challenges us for Strana Mechty and your dezgra rejects take the Emerald Talon. You think you are so clever in stripping my clan of its pride and character, yet you sit here now, on the ground, at the full mercy of a disgraced criminal. So you honestly think all of _that_ combined could even touch the pride of my clan? Your ambitions are shallow and your planning flawed."

"Maybe all you have seen so far, but you missed the crescendo, your clan's final act." And it was pride that won the day. With Arthur realizing that he was not leaving this room alive, he decided to prove to Thao that he was doing this for nothing, that the Nighthawks' little crusade could not stop the impending destruction of its clan. "When your clan loses itself in questioning its own substance when facing extinction, your dishonored Watch will be accused of destroying our primary genetics repository on Strana Mechty."

"What…?" Thao's mind took a step back. _Did he just say what I thought he said?_

The change on his face must've been apparent, because Arthur continued, "Oh yes. Stripped of all honor and charged with genocide, your _leader_, Kael Pershaw finally slips into his senile dementia and wants to go out with a bang, sticking it to the clan that that overran you. He orders the bombing of my clan's most prized possession in a last, feeble attempt at going down in history and meaning something. In doing so he proves his criminal accusations as evidence from your council reveals, and Clan Steel Viper, the victim of his actions, wins the right of a 

Trial of Annihilation. No matter what you do here, your clan will be destroyed by our hands, and you will be to blame.

"I will die a hero, while your mentor dies a limp, cancerous tumor in your clan's history; his genetic legacy purged from your ranks before the Vipers take it all." He studied the horror on Thao's face, watching him try to figure out if what he was saying were true, the implications of it horrific enough as a lie. "He is dead already, quiaff? You are all that is left of his legacy?" Then he smiled and shook his head in satisfaction, "It fits."

The anger swelled within Thao. "You would destroy your own repository to kill us?" His voice lowered to reflect his scorn, but he could not find words to follow up.

Arthur's face swelled with pride in his victory. He knew it was over, with Thao finally losing his sense of control and his own plans being too solid to fail. "Sacrifice is needed for any victory. Yours is for naught."

_Sacrifice,_ Thao thought. With him learning of his supposed betrayal and murder of his own unit several years ago, his previous commander conspiring against his own clan, losing warriors to a war that should have never been, and worst of all, having his mentor, Kael relegated to history as a mass murderer, he decided he had sacrificed enough. It was time to make the enemy sacrifice.

Thao dropped his rifle and walked up to Arthur, grabbing the now alarmed man by his throat and lifting him into the air with strength brought on by rage. Arthur struggled against his grip, looking into Thao's eyes as his brain was denied both air and blood, washing his body in panic and helplessness.

The room watched as Arthur slowly died, uselessly flailing and hitting his killer with desperate swings of his weakening arms. He did not make a sound, no gurgling, no last words. He just flailed and flailed, looking at Thao, who never broke his gaze until the body fell limp in his grasp, eyes still open with the shock of its impending death. While Thao won by taunting Arthur's pride enough to make him confess the depths of his obsession with vengeance, Arthur won in enraging him enough to kill before getting the code that could stop it. Only Gretchen shook her head in refusal at what she saw, while the rest of the faces, Jacob's men included were still stricken with shock from learning of his plans.

Thao dropped the body and turned away to pick up his rifle and take complete charge of the room and its inhabitants, now having left civility far behind, "Okay, this is the deal. We may never make it out of Renatia alive, but I have a mission here. At least one of you knows the decryption code to his server, and you are going to tell me quickly or none of you are leaving here alive either."

A silence followed as no one spoke up. After a few moments, Thao raised his rifle with one hand and fired at a Steel Viper tech, forcing everyone to wince at the sudden execution.

But he had not lost it yet, as the shot narrowly missed, boring a hole through the terminal behind the cowering tech whose life had just flashed before his eyes. "I am not fucking around here," he told everyone, throwing his verbal restrictions out the window as well.

One of the Viper warriors, his face heavy with anger and disgust, looked at the highest ranking Viper warrior in the room, a star captain who was staring down the barrel of Bree's rifle. "Star Captain, tell him the code."

The star captain turned only his head to meet the warrior and shot him a look of refusal, to which the warrior continued, "Blow up our main repository? Are you _crazy_?"

Thao took interest in the exchange and did not involve himself, yet. Another warrior spoke up, "Star Captain, tell him! This is madness!"

"Hold your tongue mechwarrior," the star captain replied, sounding extremely aggravated that they ratted him out as the only one who knows the decryption code.

But the first warrior was not having it, "Cutter," he started, omitting his rank in a most insubordinate tone, "If you do not give him the code, I will make sure you end up like that _thing_ on the floor!"

The second warrior hit him with logic, "We all know now. We will not hold our peace! If you let that madman blow our repository, I swear by the blood of Kerensky himself--"

"Okay," the star captain quipped. "I understand." His voice wreaked of defeat, but at least he would not let his wanting for revenge damage his clan in ways most could not fathom.

He sat, exhaling his defeat. He closed his eyes, swallowed hard with effort, and spoke it, "Samuel, fifteen three."

Daniels almost typed it when Gretchen's hand stopped him. Thao spoke her concern aloud, "That would not be a failsafe code to erase everything, would it?"

Inhaling deep again to overcome his urge for resisting, he replied, "No, it is the right code." That is when Thao briskly walked up to him and knelt to match his eye level. He stared into the star captain's eyes with his own cold, heartless orbs until he was convinced that the look of despair was genuine, and told Daniels to use it.

As Daniels typed, another tech spoke up, reciting some arcane passage, "Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, oxen and sheep, camel and donkey."

Thao actually knew what he was referring to, thought most of the warriors present were outright confused. Julian had kept a bible in his book collection, telling Thao of its importance in so many wars and acts of philanthropy alike. While Thao never read it, he knew it was a controversial historical reference, and had an unmistakable language to it. The fact that the decryption code was the name of a passage that recited God's order of the killing of an entire people only made sense, as something finally did today.

Then, suddenly, the consol in front of Gretchen and Daniels burst to life, opening menu after menu of information, with everything from timelines to Arthur's personal unit rosters to correspondence with various contacts needed for his clandestine operation's success. It was everything they could have hoped for and more. The excitement on Gretchen's face made its way over to Thao, who just ordered, "Send it all to Star Admiral Malthus now before something happens to it."

"Affirmative!" she replied with vigor.

But not moments after she began her transfer, battlemech footsteps boomed their way into the room from outside as the distracted security forces finally approached after getting the run-around. Mechwarrior Weston gave him an update from his communicator and he decided to hang tight in the hidden basement until the files were completely uploaded through the Emerald Talon's secure channel.

Then suddenly, over the general frequency everyone could hear, _"Steel Viper forces in Renatia, cease all combat activity. This is Star Colonel Adrian Malthus from the Emerald Talon warship in orbit over your location. I have targeted your command structure and surrounding patrols. If you open fire on any contacts before word from your Khan reaches you and I have been advised by mine, I will bombard you from orbit until you pose no more threat to my trothkin on the ground. Be this your only warning."_

A silence ensued as every Steel Viper in the city conferred with their superiors through Galaxy Commander Angelica Zalman before lowering their arms and disengaging.

Though Thao could not predict what the Khans of their respective clans would do with the information garnered from Arthur's personal files, he was satisfied he did all he could to right the situation. It was all he had in him, and he hoped all the sacrifice leading up to this point would at least be acknowledged. Had Kael survived to see that they had succeeded, Thao swore he would have smiled.

* * *

In her war room on Strana Mechty, Marthe Pryde killed the feed and took a deep breath. She looked over at Nicole Hoskins, who had changed her attitude since discovering the identity of the Emerald Talon invaders and assisted her to best of her ability. The information filled her screen with pages upon pages of correspondence and historical references to Arthur's private investigations. His contacts concerning the build-up to the war were found throughout the information, being difficult to weed out but incriminating enough to have Marthe immediately send a search team to the Steel Viper Strana Mechty repository with the cooperation of Khan Brett Andrews and his teams while he sorted through the same material on his end. It was so confusing, though the shock of it all coming in at once forced a momentary homeworld-wide cease-fire between the two clans and promise of a personal meeting between the khans in the near future to discuss the relevance of such information as a pretense for war and its continuation. Nicole's shock had convinced Marthe that she really did not have knowledge of Arthur's personal endeavors, and she convinced the Falcon khan that Brett Andrews did not either. The actions of the Steel Vipers in the wake of learning about the workings of a man driven to destroying his own clan's most prideful symbol to provoke the annihilation of his self-perceived nemesis proved that they were a proud and honorable clan, and did not want to continue such a now-known dirty campaign without figuring out the truth.

But as that truth absorbed, the shock eventually subsided as Marthe started to think about the last two days and what her clan had been through. So many warriors were thrown into combat, eager to prove themselves to their absent commanders to find their opposition elite warriors years their senior in experience. The amount of individual loss, the enclaves, the troop morale, the fact that her clan had been so brutalized in a way she would never have seen coming, including the persecution of the Nighthawks, who she had to owe this extraordinary development.

In fact, the only person who could have imagined the scope of such a thing had already fell victim to it. Her long time council, Kael Pershaw, finally fell. She heard he went down fighting in his 'mech, something she found difficult to imagine but was happy to hear.

His legacy would take work to restore among the Falcon ranks, but his unit, Star Captain Thao Prentice continued where he left off. He succeeded in unearthing the truth. He did it sly, and dirty. The Nighthawks fought the kind of war that was being used against them. But their actions avoided more death, and that was the difference between them and who the clan thought they were. And at least, as some kind of consolation, he survived. _Maybe someday he too would be the one grooming a successor who would save the clan in the most unorthodox of ways,_ she thought.

With Thao washing his hands of his past, he may actually have a bright future ahead of him. But his past was still catching up with him, as her incoming video showed. It looked like several dropships had changed course from mountains south of Renatia to the city proper to claim their prize. After all they had been through, it was a Jade Falcon who would reward them with an execution.

"What is it?" Nicole asked.

Marthe's reply was but a whisper, "Dev…"

* * *

Star Colonel Dev Iler's dropships were almost to the landing point he highlighted nearly an hour ago for his navigator when Star Admiral Adrian Malthus sent a blanket communiqué over the southern part of the continent. It appeared, however impossible it was, that some of the Nighthawks made it into Renatia before he arrived at their landing site in the mountains and convinced the Emerald Talon to intervene on their behalf.

He was learning to not underestimate them as they had done nothing but surprise him since their cowardly retreat from the Renatia trial of possession itself. Their surviving this long, and making it to the new Steel Viper capital in this region through its defenses showed him their determination at making his efforts at cutting his loose ends as difficult as possible. But he was not finished. With the Emerald Talon keeping the Vipers in line, and the other clan itself knowing that it was not the object of his mission, Dev just planned on going in there with superior firepower and killing that stubborn thorn in his side once and for all, both fulfilling the clan council's decision and forcing Adrian Malthus to consider shooting down one of his own dropships.

The tension building in anticipation of finally ridding himself of those dezgra forced the travel time to stretch however. So Dev found himself harboring extra energy that he decided to burn off by foregoing the intercom system and traveling to the bridge in person to ask about their estimated remaining flight time. He worked his way back just the same, not really happy or sad about the progress but just wanting to fast-forward this entire trip so he could command a battlemech again. The adrenaline high of his previous victory in New Sydney finally subsided and he crashed harder than he would have preferred. Maybe it was the politics that got to him, or maybe it was simply thinking about the past. Either way, shooting at some bandits sure sounded like a good time to him, especially ones that managed to survive the Steel Vipers as long as they did and threatened to make his life a living hell if they were allowed to snoop around anymore. It was personal now, which sat just fine with him.

He reentered his office, squeezing his frame through the small doorway before heading straight for the seat behind his desk. Right as he passed the edge of the desk itself he heard his door shut behind unexpectedly. The sound startled him and accompanied a voice, "We need to have a talk."

Realizing it was the tech that delayed his launch that he looked forward to berating, his head grew instantly hot at the tone used in breaking protocol and demanding anything from a bloodnamed warrior of a superior caste. He turned around to see his supposed subordinate standing in front of the closed door with an exceptionally calm expression on his face. _That face…_ he thought. It was so familiar. Like he was an actor in a movie he was watching and just so narrowly forgot what role he was so known for.

The tech walked forward to sit in the chair across from him, which he was not ordered to do as Dev likes to discipline lower caste members with them in a fairly uncomfortable position. While opening his mouth to stop the tech his brain landed in the right spot as he recognized those eyes of ice…

Dev instinctually pulled his sidearm from his holster to have the tech pull three throwing spikes from his left sleeve with his right hand and in a smooth motion release them at once directly into his own wrist and hand. He screamed in pain and instantly dropped the gun, now instead clutching his arm that was sending surges of pain through his upper body. Acting on autopilot, he reached to pull the spikes from their new homes when the tech again opened his mouth out of turn in a tone suggesting he was annoyed, "Do not remove them," Dev stopped when the tech articulated the word 'not' in a way most demanding, "You will just bleed out."

Now he remembered. It was that Star Captain, Julian Buhallin: the warrior he couldn't find any information on after some debacle on Barcella several years go. "What the… what are you doing on my dropship?" He forwent asking how he got on his ship, but used his anger to go straight for asking why.

Speaking calmly and lowering himself into the chair facing the desk with one leg folded over his other knee in a posture most comfortable, Julian replied, "Let me guess: you have two small scars in your lower back, on either side of the base of your spine."

"Wha--?" That was unexpected. Despite the fact that he did not see any comment like that coming, Dev in fact did have two scars on his lower back.

"Back in the day they used a titanium based conductor for the sensory manipulation trials. It heated up a lot in the long sessions. Later on they switched to a nickel base with a silver coating. It had the same effect, probably better, but minimized scarring."

"What are you talking about?"

Julian narrowed his eyes while he looked at Dev. He made him completely uncomfortable having infiltrated his office, pacified his ability to defend himself, and was now studying him like a lab animal. "You know, the concept of guilt widely held on ancient Terra was a spiritual, or moral condition in which you have wronged someone and sense the metaphysical imbalance you have caused. But later, scientists claimed that guilt is imprinted in the mind, conditioned through years of being told what constitutes acceptable and unacceptable behavior."

_What in Kerensky's name is this man babbling about? He is insane,_ Dev thought to himself as he tried to mentally block out the pain of the spikes lodged in his arm and took a seat himself, eyeballing the intercom button and quickly looking away when realizing Julian was following his eyes and knew exactly what he was thinking.

"Under this thinking, we can 'unlearn' what makes us guilty, possibly eliminating the feeling altogether. Suddenly, right and wrong are trivial concepts that have no bearing on reality and no place in our decisions on how to act."

"What are you talking about?!" Dev screamed in frustration.

"They used the box, right? They gave you a little shovel to scoop up your shit so you did not get infected sleeping in it?"

_No…_ Dev started to panic inside. Images of the darkened walls stained with blood from countless people before; the stench of his own feces lodging itself in his nose, making it hard to breathe… He pushed all this from his mind almost a decade ago and thought it was lost to him forever. He was wrong.

The look on his face must've told Julian he started to access those memories, prepping his victim for more and setting him up for his ultimate downfall. It was like playing with a marionette that just so happened to have a soul.

"How long did it take you?"

"Take me to what?"

Julian elaborated in a consistent tone, "Dr. Meng Youwei. In his youth he considered himself an artist; in his later years, a businessman. He specialized in… well, I think you know what he specialized in."

Dev remained silent, trying to block out the invading images of his time in captivity. Meng's face stared at him just like Julian's now, with his eyes penetrating every defense he could muster to read him like a book.

"The later scientists had it right. Guilt is imprinted. All morality is imprinted, which means it can all be erased and rewritten, like a computer program." Julian leaned forward, tilting his head as he continued to study the man in front of him, "But they… took the clan out of you. Somehow, he was good enough to erase everything: your upbringing, your past, any sense of loyalty… They call it 'psychological identity deconstruction', but he truly was an artist…"

"What is your point?" Dev growled in frustration.

"You betrayed your own clan, though I cannot figure out why. Did they have you buy into the Inner Sphere ideas of capitalism and greed? Did they promise riches and pleasures, a high ranking command? Or did they simply turn you into the ultimate Darwinist, constantly wanting to challenge your clan to make it stronger. Make it like you, erase its sense of right and wrong and allow it to do whatever it takes to survive, even if it destroys everything in the process?"

"What do you know?"

"I know you ordered the execution of an entire trinary of warriors, men that trusted you with their lives. You betrayed them, and they knew it."

"The clan will survive. That is what really matters."

"Aff," Julian continued, averting his eyes momentarily to shake his head in disapproval, "Hopefully."

"What does that mean?"

"The first time you betrayed us, you gave Michael Steiner top level access codes to our complete touman profile. You put every single planet, troop, and civilian at risk. The second time you betrayed us you made murderers out of innocent warriors as some of them unknowingly gunned down their own, while the rest joined your perverted world void of conscience, convinced it was the right thing to do.

"You lied to them too, did you not? Star Captain Jacob found your transmission logs to Michael. You knew he would rat you out for the traitor you were. So you pinned it on him and had the star captain he told keep it a secret after helping your new, 'replacement' unit kill him off to maintain their honor. Only to have them systematically suffer 'accidents' throughout the years following to make sure no one could connect you to that massacre. It was bad enough asking them to kill their own, but you have one hell of a way to reward that loyalty."

"It was for the good of the clan. I do not expect you to understand that. We were stagnating with each passing year," Dev's voice rose with anger as he spoke, "Weakening our only chance to succeed, to take Terra and show the rest of the clans, and the Inner Sphere we were right!"

His face grew serious with resolve now, "We either plow our way to victory, or just stand in the way of someone else who can. We allowed a freebirth a bloodname, hegira from some spheroid, and allowed a Wolf to embarrass us by killing our rightful ilKhan on the Grand Council floor. A second culling is needed now more than ever."

Then it got silent for a moment before Julian spoke up, "I see now how you two got along so well."

Dev yielded to the idea that Julian knew more than he was letting on, which was most of everything it seemed. So he let some of his guard down trying not to incriminate himself further, "You mean Arthur?"

"Aff." Then Julian leaned forward even closer, "Did you know about the Emerald Talon?" A hint of Dev denying his confusion surfaced momentarily on his face, answering the question for him. "Did you know he booby trapped the trial arena to kill you the moment you met up with him in Renatia?"

Again, Dev fought the urge to portray any response.

"And, here is the kick in the balls: did you know he was going to destroy his clan's main genetic repository and blame it on Star Colonel Kael Pershaw as a pretext for a Trial of Annihilation against us?"

"That is bullshit," Dev interrupted. Now it was getting real out of hand.

"Bullshit," Julian nodded his head in cynical agreement. "I spoke with Star Captain Jacob yesterday."

"Impossible. He died years ago." He said what he thought was true, but the dots slowly started to connect and form another truth that challenged his own.

"Neg, he lived. His unit pulled together through that winter to emerge and survive on their own here. They are helping Star Captain Thao Prentice, your former subordinate take down Arthur Stoklas in Renatia."

"Bullshit!" Dev failed. He let it through: doubt. He started to believe, he started to entertain the idea it was all possible, that he knew everything; that Julian could read him like just like Meng Youwei so long ago. His captors back then told him that they made him stronger, that they took away his ability to fear. They told him they made him stronger than his clan did, and that he was above it, with no use for something like doubt. But once back in the ranks, he didn't feel above the clan so much as outside of it. He wanted it to prove itself to him, go through the same humiliation to emerge victorious and taller than all the others. It turned into his life goal to never be vulnerable again, ever, and eventually that became an obsession. He would do anything to preserve himself, and in turn his clan needed to prove it was better than all as well.

But he started to doubt. Even then he started to doubt if he was good enough for the clan having cracked at the hands of a spheroid, and that confusion forced him aside. It forced him to do bad things and strive to justify them. It forced him to push himself farther than his peers, even at the expense of their lives. He was determined to be the best, the top of the food chain, all because he wanted to eliminate that doubt. It was his only remaining weakness.

"I ask again, how long did you last?"

Dev swallowed hard, "Last for what?"

"How long, before you cracked?"

He never delved into his past. He never told anyone anything about his captivity. It was like being mentally raped to no end, victimized repeatedly in the ultimate violation of a human being. But his experience justified his actions in his mind, "Look, you do not know what it is like. You do not know what it feels like to have them inside your head, inside your body, making it do things. Do not lecture me on 'guilt'."

Julian just listened.

"I am above guilt. I am above anything the clan alone could have made me."

"No," Julian said heavy with bitterness. He sprung up and pointed a hateful finger at Dev while exhaling pure contempt with his words, "You did not make it. You cracked! You failed! You let them think you won. You let them brainwash you into thinking you were strong. You betrayed your own men, men who trusted you because you were too weak to accept that you fucked up! Innocent people _died_ because of your weakness. Then you sentenced _my_ unit to death to cover your tracks! Good people who have sacrificed more for their clan than you could ever hope to. People who rely on me have been _killed_ because of you. And now," he sat back again, lowering his tone, "You opened the floodgate for another sociopath to try and annihilate us. He is not playing by our rules. He does not care who dies. He is exactly like you. He would kill his own to prove he is not weak."

It all sunk in so fast that Dev could not contain it. He had hurt many. Believing for so long that he was a victim of circumstance, he remained bitter toward everyone and everything. It was all capable of ruining him again, so he needed to maintain complete control over the world around him. That mentality wore him thin, and before he knew it, he became something else, something that could eat its young without a second thought if helped him maintain that control. Strength, weakness, trust, loyalty, betrayal, vulnerability: he had been living this life of cycling fears for so long that he just broke down on the spot when confronting them all at once. _Had I ever truly been in control…?_

"So answer my question: how long did you last?" Julian looked into the eyes of a broken man dreadfully holding back tears of disgust, anger, and regret all at once. He did not blink. He wanted the man to see that the person doing this to him had gone through this as well, that it was possible to simply be loyal, have faith in those around you, and be fulfilled simply adhering to your own sense of morality.

"Eight days."

Julian instantly broke eye contact and turned his head in disgust. But Dev tried one last time to justify himself, "Hey…!" Then he dipped his head in defeat, "It is not like anything we have ever experienced before. It is… so dark, and numb."

"Dr. Kurt Gedichte. Squirrelly guy, cleaned you up after Meng was done for the day…"

Dev remembered him. For some odd reason, despite all his brain was trying to process, he could picture the man perfectly.

"We captured him seven months after your rescue. Kael had him run the program on me, the same one they put you through."

Dev looked up with surprise and confusion. Somehow, if Julian were telling the truth, then he overcame the conditioning and actually _did_ become stronger. He was in total control, choosing which morals to adhere to and fighting to the death for them. But, despite all the implications that came with the shared experience, he just wanted to know one thing. He needed to know if this man was worthy to judge him. So he asked, "How long did you last?"

Julian pressed the tips of his fingers together and dipped his own head in thought, absorbing the experience that was ripping through the mind of the man across from him. Then, after a deep breath that told Dev that he had been humbled and understood the weight of his experience, "Twenty two days. They shut the program down after that, said that the next levels of physical torture would kill me and therefore I had passed. Gedichte had never seen that before."

Julian got up and grabbed the pistol Dev dropped just minutes ago. He removed and pocketed the magazine, then extracted the chambered round and stood it upright on Dev's desk next to the pistol itself. "As long as you breathe, there is always the opportunity…," Dev listened intently, though he was too ashamed to look Julian in the eyes, "…to do the right thing. Even though the right thing now will not erase the wrongs of your past, it is still a sign of strength."

Julian then produced a small audio recorder and laid it next to the pistol. "You owe it to the men you have killed. You owe it to the clan that took you back after surrendering. And most of all, you owe it to yourself. Be what you wanted to be, an example to our clan. Show it that you can find the strength to atone for your sins, that you can be accountable and accept the consequences of your actions. This once, take real control of yourself."

Then Julian turned around and paused, not showing a shred of concern that Dev could put that final bullet in his back. "Go out doing the right thing, and you will leave this world fulfilled."

Then he opened the door and left, closing it behind him and leaving Dev Iler alone with both his past and his choice of a future. For some reason, the battle was easy, and he felt no inclination anymore to cover up his sins and convince himself that he could do better next time. He resigned to doing it right once, and leaving it be.

Julian stayed outside the office door for several minutes, wondering how he was able to resist what he did so long ago. He tried to imagine him turning out like Dev, broken and conflicted beyond reason, obsessed with perfection while letting their lies eat through his soul from the inside. Then he realized that he would have killed himself long before giving in to that. At first glance Julian realized that an outsider would see him embracing the impossibly noble yet simple ideals of his clan as an easy way out, a crutch to lean on with which to focus his energy without going through the real trouble of finding his own way.

But they would not realize that traveling that path always leads one to a hollow existence. In search for one's personal truth, they inevitably create one instead, just to make an end to that journey. Because the truth is: there was no eternal truth to be found. Life was about what you choose to believe in and how you represent its values. Believing in just yourself is a doomed path because you are forced to recreate your values every time your efforts to uphold them fail. Doubt in one's purpose is by far the worst fate anyone could suffer. And those that walk that path and never doubt always try to take the world down with them when insanity infests them entirely.

A single gunshot rang out from behind the door, and Julian turned away thinking, _There was more life in that single trigger pull than his entire career as a warrior. I almost envy him. He hit his apex and fulfilled his existence. His travels are over, may he finally find peace._


	9. Epilogue

**EPILOGUE**

The starport cafeteria was nearly empty this late in the afternoon, which suited Julian just fine. He had lunch with Star Colonel Gretchen Talasko before she departed Strana Mechty for her regular station. With the Nighthawks' surprising redemption speaking well of her, her galaxy commander had no problem clearing her to continue her current assignment on Sheridan. The two week long debrief didn't actually wear on her like she thought, as they were granted travel privileges between councils. Every event was told by every member participating on Marshall those few days, and her testimony was as important as the rest of the unit's.

Julian walked her outside as they continued their conversation. They were graced with a slight breeze as they crossed the threshold leading to the tarmac and slowly made their way to her transport in the distance that still had loaders working their payloads onboard.

"You know, I have to apologize. You came all this way and I did not get to speak to you until after the mission was over. We are lucky we survived."

She smiled, "Aff. Though I think luck had little to do with it. Your group is a stubborn one. They could take Terra themselves if authorized."

He actually laughed at that. His demeanor again relaxed around her. It was strange, but like Huntress so long ago when they first met, he just seemed to let loose a little more in her presence. Maybe certain warriors have a vibe that simply clicks in proximity, but he knew too little about that to postulate. "Aye, they are special. I thank you though for helping them through all this. You witnessed… something that I hoped would never happen."

"I think given the circumstances, both clans came out stronger from it. It was rough, yes, but you did bleed the poison out, quiaff?"

On that note she was correct. Brett Andrews looked over Arthur's files with a giant magnifying glass and, after the search teams found and disarmed the planted explosives Arthur's men snuck past security in the repository confirming the credibility of the documents, stopped the homeworld offensive altogether. With Marthe Pryde knowing what he did, it only seemed right that a war founded on murder, blackmail, and a false flag operation aimed at destroying his clan's most precious monument should not be continued in any form.

Marthe was a trooper though. She left him the territory his units won through their trials without contest. The fact that most of the cluster commanders were lured away at the last moment to 'soften' the enemy angered Brett enough to give a few back, and allow immediate counter-trials of possession by Clan Jade Falcon on a small, agreed upon number of recently lost enclaves in a show of good faith while adhering to a temporary cease-fire period concerning the rest of their forces.

Both clans' Watch agencies were temporarily deactivated and inspected for separate, obvious reasons. The late Loremaster Arthur Stoklas' loyal commanders were removed while any questionable units carrying out offensive operations for Clan Jade Falcon were recalled to modify their modus operandi in a decision from the clan council as a whole.

Julian agreed on that point, but did not totally buy into her optimism, "We did, but the very purpose of our unit is to do that. While extreme in every measure, this mission was no different in principal from any other of ours. Though our tactics this time were definitely… brash."

"Yeah," she laughed, "Brash being the best word to describe them. But the whole thing leads me to ask you something."

They stopped and faced each other, "What?" he asked.

"I may never know what you have experienced personally throughout the years, but constantly working outside the system, with no promise of honor or glory? I know the rest of your unit accepts that thankless job that nearly had your own clan kill you out of an extreme sense of duty. But you… you have probably seen things that must transcend that straight forward thinking. How do you not implode, or simply lose it?"

He thought about it quite often since his episode with Dev, though he never satisfactorily answered it for himself. So he took a step back and answered from a different angle, "Sometimes… I imagine what kind of world this would be if I stop. If I let people like Dev have their way, will what we are all fighting for be the same in the end? Is the result something I would _want_ to have fought for? My unit, ours is the destination, not the journey. I do what I do personally because sometimes the only good weapon against a monster is another monster."

"But you are no monster," she countered.

"Maybe, maybe not. But regardless, I use what I have seen… to understand human nature, the core of it, and stop it from affecting our noble goals."

"And what is human nature?"

He shook his head, "It is selfish, confused, and always self-justified. It is the Inner Sphere and all its Succession Wars. It is Elias Crichell. It is that child that pulls the wings from a beetle just because he can, and the poor farmer who knows no better marching off to battle for his house lord who takes his land from him anyway. We… are not pretty on the inside."

"You honestly believe that?"

"Yes."

"That is a shame," she started as she continued toward the transport with him keeping pace. "Because you are fighting a war to liberate those poor farmers and children with beetles. What do you do when you take them from their government?"

He looked at her as he spoke it, "Give them purpose. We let them be a part of something special that does not want their money or their children as body shields for some war over royal family disputes. We lift the weight of ambiguity from their shoulders and give them a reason to exist. That," he finished, "is noble, and worth fighting for."

"How can you been so negative and optimistic at the same time?"

"Huh?"

"Never mind. But I guess that is easier to say for someone who spends so much time with spheroid freeborn. The variety of my personal interaction is a little more… limited. But many think the invading clans have been tainted by the Inner Sphere, as recent events probably justify, and you stand here telling me that it is us who stayed behind who lost our way because we serve no purpose? That the clans on the front lines found focus and therefore are closer to what Nicholas envisioned?"

"I guess. I never really followed that train of thought that far."

"Well, maybe someday my clan will carve out its own chunk of worlds, take spheroids of our own under our wing and find focus. Here it gets pretty boring and repetitive if you ask me."

Then he chuckled, "Yeah, like the last few weeks have been that boring. I pass stool more exciting than that insane suicide trip."

"Well, it has been a wild ride. You know, I came here to testify on your behalf, and instead found myself more or less filling in for you the entire time while you were out and about."

"Hey, I already apologized."

"No, it is not that. But instead of learning what makes you tick in particular, I witness the complete erosion of the clan idea through the eyes of your unit."

Julian paused for a moment, "And?"

"Well, let me just say that after spending so much time with them, I see how they could survive the ordeal itself. I do not know how you guys fight the way you are forced to without becoming the very thing you fight, but you do. It is a shame that the clan needs you at all though."

They finally reached the transport vessel entrance. She turned to say goodbye when he replied, "Yeah, I guess our ultimate goal is to finally remove our own purpose for existing. Talk about self-destructive," he said with a laugh.

"That is something you will have to deal with, not me. It has been… an experience."

"You go off now and play war games with your little friends. Do not go too hard on them."

"Oh, I just may. But next time we meet up for a suicide run, I am buying the drinks."

"Deal," he said with a smirk as she waved and disappeared into the craft. He took his time leaving the tarmac, not looking back as her transport vessel lifted off and pushed its way through the overcast sky. Maybe she did learn something about the clans as a whole. Maybe they all did. But one thing was for sure: Now, after all they had been through in the last two weeks, he needed another vacation.

* * *

Thao and Bree enjoyed their time together between councils alone. He finally forwent the formalities of his command and booked a room at a beach resort far from any traffic, stop lights, or newsstands. It was the best development of doing everything here instead of Ironhold.

Whenever their briefings broke, they returned, picking up where they left off, just the two of them. They never really noticed how beautiful Strana Mechty really was, and even after all their lounging around on the beach, they still failed to notice it, because they concentrated just on each other.

It wasn't a real life romance novel, but it was something they both needed to get out of their systems, something they could share that didn't almost kill them. Every night they ended up being the last couple out on the sand, watching the sun set and remaining there together for hours on end. Life may return to normal after it, or it may not. But here, away from the rigid expectations of their positions, the future didn't matter. It was just about them.

* * *

After the two week string of debriefings, the Nighthawks finally convened as a unit, wearing their dress uniforms and conversing amongst each other in a large conference room about what they did with their time off while awaiting further orders. It was the first time many of them saw each other since they arrived here from Marshall still sore from battle.

The interim was nail-biting for some of them, as they knew Kael Pershaw was the one who kept them above water before and was the only reason they were around in the first place. With him gone, they were at the full mercy of the clan council, which did not give them the benefit of the doubt last time around. In fact, while everyone was present, some would admit that it was almost unnatural to not have the half-prosthetic commander sitting front and center, intimidating them all into silence. With Thao not high enough in rank or position to influence official decision, he just resigned to the fact that his only use was leading them into battle and back, which would probably never happen again.

"Room, atten-hut!"

Khan Marthe Pryde entered the room to see them all snap to attention at Thao's command. The obvious look of surprise on some of their faces would have flattered her if she were not used to that reaction when meeting the lower ranks under such personal circumstances. Aside from the recent clan council they all tried to forget, most of them had never seen her in person. They had expected the new loremaster, or at most their liaison, Arimas Malthus. But with Kael gone, their direct connection to the Turkina Keshik had been thought cut entirely.

She ordered them all at ease and waited for them to return to their seats. They had not heard of anything pertaining to the status of their unit or the acknowledged results of their trial of refusal.

She began, "As you all know, Clan Steel Viper has terminated its offensive and is now observing a temporary cease-fire with our forces throughout the homeworlds. The information you supplied from Marshall led Khan Brett Andrews to execute immediate action against certain clan watch elements and formally apologize for the murder of four of our forward surveillance units, the taking of the Emerald Talon without a proper trial, and the underhanded manner in which our leadership ranks were lured away from their posts for the express purpose of easing their initial attack wave. He told me personally he wants to meet our best on the battlefield, not pull the rug from under us to cheat his own warriors of a fight. I told him he should have met you on the battlefield."

Some laughed, others clapped. She was not good with well-placed humor, though, with the air lightened a bit she continued, "With the late Star Colonel Dev Iler's recorded confession, your unit is absolved of all charges brought forth in the previous clan council proceeding. The council believes he twisted the facts, and fabricated others for personal gain." She let that settle in the heads of those present, observing that most of them did not show her any signs that they thought it made any difference as to how the clan viewed them.

"I have decided to disclose Star Colonel Kael Pershaw's personal files involving the Kenton mission with several others mentioned in the proceeding to the open military 

archives." Now some eyes lulled in anticipation of bad news, "That, coupled with an abbreviated summary of your actions aboard the Emerald Talon and Marshall proper with their results uncovering what they did backed by myself and Star Admiral Adrian Malthus, the clan council has decided to deny any further official action against you and has, in fact, suggested some lines in the remembrance to spotlight the sacrifices made even after your own peers had passed judgment. Newly appointed Loremaster Rosendo Hazen is still familiarizing himself with the scope of his new responsibilities and as such it will be a while before any development concerning that emerges. It appears that the battle ROMs from your Marshall campaign, as unorthodox as your methods were, have won you several fans amongst the warrior caste. Congratulations."

Now some activity stirred within the room. Not that the acceptance of their peers was as heavy on their minds in comparison to issues more close to home, but the shock of the turn in the clan's attitude toward them felt deeply satisfying. She came through for them just as she promised Kael several weeks ago.

They knew though, through interacting with both civilians and other warriors during their small leave of absences that Kael Pershaw's death in combat had more to do with it than she stated. His status among the Jade Falcon ranks was legendary, and the thought of his reputation being as unjustly ravaged as it was tugged at the very sense of identity in which most held their clan. He was always around, most thinking he could never die. He commanded Aidan Pryde and kept the position of Clan Loremaster in the Grand Council for almost two decades. And those that met him never forgot the experience, as the stories of a cold wind following him like a swath of death served as tales to scare children across the Kerensky Cluster. Any of superior rank were instantly humbled in his presence due to his ability to read the mind of everyone around before they even knew what they were thinking, and his lacking the tact to withhold that information even at the expense of public credibility and egos abroad.

"However," she started with her eyes panning across the room, "Despite your good standing with the majority of our warrior ranks, it has also been decided to deactivate your unit indefinitely. Effective immediately, you are no longer part of the Jade Falcon Watch, or any other formal organization for that matter. While the importance of the Watch as a whole has finally been recognized, increasing resources and recruitment, its activities will be under considerably greater scrutiny and be relegated to passive intelligence gathering only."

Now they shook their heads in disappointment. They could be praised, but not allowed to continue?

Marthe nodded at Mechwarrior Weston, who had his hand raised. He addressed her, "Ma'am, with all due respect, what do we have to do to prove ourselves here?"

The rest of the unit followed suit, vocally agreeing and showing their disagreement with the council decision. It was Thao that emerged from the corner he was standing in that restored order, "Everyone, this is the will of the clan. We may have fought and sacrificed to keep it alive and well, but it rewarded us in its own way. So now we have to deal with the flipside of its decision."

Marthe continued after nodding to him, "You have to realize, the clan is not ready to accept condoning what they saw several weeks ago. Arthur Stoklas used deceptive tactics to set us up for failure, and in doing so embarrassed the whole of the clan. In fact, your succeeding in taking him down after they called for your execution was an added insult. But they acknowledged your accomplishment and had to deal with how to avoid a mess like this in the future.

"While I am sure everyone here would claim the solution to be increasing the Watch's offensive capability and training more units like yours since it was you that was successful in stopping that campaign after their response proved useless, the rest of the clan would rather see the power to wage an underhanded campaign removed entirely. Fighting fire with fire is not in our doctrine as you well know, so it will take some time for them to, if at all, accept your place amongst their ranks."

Gregors spoke up, "At least we got that much. When you think about it, they have never known what we have come up against in defending them before. Finally they see that there is a use for us, though they just do not know how to admit it."

Marthe agreed, "More or less."

Then Weston spoke up, seemingly not caring about his breech of protocol with his Khan in the room, "Then where does that leave us? The Watch gets a booster shot but we get the boot. Do they want us on front line duty again?"

Star Commander Marx added, "Are we going to be disbanded and disbursed throughout the touman?"

Thao stepped forward amidst the tension in the air. Everyone seemed to be on the verge of outburst at the moment, so he addressed her personally in the front of the room, "Ma'am, I formally request this unit's roster remain intact. I am more than capable of leading this group into whatever situation our clan asks of it."

She just looked at him plainly, "I cannot grant that request Star Captain."

Though they were not audible, the groans throughout the room were felt regardless while Thao fought back the urge to argue. Then she continued, "I have already decided what to do with you since you have showcased so well what areas your talents are most useful in addressing."

So Thao asked, "What is the catch?"

"The catch," a voice so familiar to them interrupted from the doorway none of them realized was open, "Is that she had not found a better place for me, so you all get stuck right where you started."

To everyone's amazement minus Marthe herself, Kael Pershaw limped into the room wearing comfortable looking fatigues. His unexpected appearance rendered the entire room speechless, let alone suddenly finding religion. "Of course, the challenges of ceasing to existing can be miserable if not dealt with properly, which Star Captain Thao Prentice has the responsibility of negotiating now."

Someone burst the thought ringing through every one of their heads that very moment, starting an eruption of chatter, "I thought you were dead!"

"…yeah, we saw your genes get accepted into the breeding program…"

"…flew around for six and a half hours looking for you…!"

"…could not have given you an upgrade while you were out…?"

He raised his good hand to silence them, which worked rather well. "First thing is first: if you have to ask, and I am sure you will, again, and again, and again if I do not explain it now, is yes, I did flat line momentarily on Marshall. But I shortly found myself the butt of a cruel, cosmic joke when I landed face first into a mountainside and somehow kept breathing."

Now it started to make sense to them. With the delayed ejection, the life-support monitor, which is built into the cockpit, disconnected with the transmitter on his seat which he apparently malfunctioned or was turned off. So the last information they received was his momentary passing. And really, who would have given him, with the spare parts of a used car and the biological consistency of a dried up leather jacket the benefit of the doubt of surviving the unforgiving terrain of Marshall's southern mountain range long enough for a personal transport to pick him up and whisk him off to a private medical facility in Renatia? It was almost if he had it all planned…

The only hand up was Star Commander Sascha, which did not surprise most of them. Kael nodded and Sascha spoke up, "Um, sir? May I ask why you faked your own death, and um… why you kept it secret from us?"

Kael spoke in what command tone he could anymore. It wasn't very loud, but everyone knew to listen. Even Marthe Pryde tuned in as he just made her job easier, "Because, it was the only way to maintain my contacts if you were disbanded. Civilians usually do not work with the dark caste willingly, and I will be damned if anything like this happens again and we are not around to stop it."

The room remained silent after he finished, quietly relishing his grumpy demeanor. He was not one to give speeches, so they figured that was all they were going to get out of him. But they didn't care. They had their sense of direction back. As long as he was still vertical and Thao had the lead, nothing could slow them down.

Kael nodded to Marthe, who concluded, "You are now off the books. The Nighthawks no longer have any affiliation with the Clan Watch or other Jade Falcon intelligence units. Your command staff reports directly to me, and only me. Recruitment is now on a special selection basis only, and your base of operations will be mobile according to my needs at the time.

"Under this new designation, upon capture, the clan will deny any knowledge of your existence and you forfeit the privilege of genetic material submission upon your death as your exploits will not be recorded in a fashion recognized by the clan proper."

She paused for a moment before continuing, "All this in exchange for complete administrative autonomy, the freedom to choose your missions, access to top level intelligence and equipment, and most importantly, the opportunity to finally serve your clan from outside the system. The leash has been removed.

"If you wish not to accept these terms, inform your commander and you will be processed for reassignment. I leave the rest to you," she said to Kael as she turned and left the room after Thao called them to attention again.

Kael simply looked over with that slight hint of annoyance in his good eye that suggested he was not particularly happy to see them or thrilled about having to speak. But, to prove that he was at home with his troops, he did open his mouth and leave them with one final word, "Oh yeah, fresh meat awaits you in the next room. I have already acquired recruits to fill the ranks and keep you busy for the moment. Have your tea and crumpets and make your way to terminal six-b for departure at 2100 hours. We already have a tasking. Dismissed."

They stood at attention again as Kael departed, to which he just annoyingly waved his hand in their direction to silently order them at ease. Gregors spoke up loud enough for everyone to hear though, "Sir, it is nice to have you back."

Kael stopped with his body already in the doorway facing away. If they could somehow see around him, they would have noticed the corner of the exposed half of his mouth curl into a smile, "You make it sound as if I had left."

And with that he exited and the unit made its way through the opposite door into the next conference room to find Jacob and his men clean shaven and dressed up in official Jade Falcon fatigues. It appeared he decided to rejoin his clan after all, but this time, under the man that forced him away before with a job he could readily identify with after so many years under the radar. It was all too convenient that he didn't exist either, making the transition surprisingly smooth.

Thao welcomed him to the unit with a handshake while the rest of them, some having already met, learned each other's names. It was without a doubt the most absurd mix of personalities a Jade Falcon unit had ever claimed. But after all they had been through, it wouldn't feel right to do it any other way.

* * *

"Kael?"

"Yeah."

"Everything in retrospect, do you wish you had died out there, in combat?" Thao and Kael were in the darkened lounge of the Iron Raptor as it hitched a ride on the latest Falcon jump ship they were using for their trip back to the occupation zone to begin their first mission since their refusal on Marshall. While the rest of the unit was on the jump ship proper exercising or enjoying the video library and grav deck while posing as a group of technicians, Kael never exited the dropship since anyone in the clan would recognize him and suddenly he is publicly back from the dead.

So Thao stayed behind and took a moment to stand next to the man who would someday hand this grand experiment over to him. Maybe it was his old age, but Kael never entertained someone of a lower rank with a one on one conversation in years past, at least not one in this context, mainly because he simply did not enjoy conversing. But he was growing lax now, at least with the warrior next to him.

The elder of the two actually thought about his answer for a moment before replying, "It seems at least once a day I recall that moment… and sometimes wonder what it would be like had I simply closed my eyes and not cared enough to last out."

"It would have been a good death."

"A beautiful death… The fulfillment of a dream."

"Then I do not understand," Thao started. "With all the ball-busting you do that has only made your days miserable, would it have killed you to give in just that one time?"

Kael actually turned to face Thao head on, "It is not becoming of you to take advantage of an old man like that."

Thao just smiled at him catching the entrapping nature of the question and his reaction, then pressed the charge, "I am just trying to get my _Hellbringer_ back. The sooner you kick over, the sooner I get my inheritance."

"Maybe it would befit you to have a trial of possession over it?"

"Sure. First to do twenty jumping jacks…"

Kael turned back to again stare out at the stars, "You know, there are those times you almost succeed at that."

"At what?"

"Pissing me off."

"Shh… do not use words like that. You almost sound human."

At that Kael produced the most horrific sound Thao had ever heard in his life. One that was sure to haunt his nightmares for years to come. It was laughter.


End file.
